Battle of Wana
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Wana was a military engagement between Pakistan Army
and the Taliban forces, supported by the foreign fighters of Osama Bin Laden
's Al-Qaeda
. The battle was among one of the bloodiest battle fought by the Pakistan Army, and it ended violently with 49 infantry troop soldiers dead. Hence, it was the first battle that was fought between Pakistani infantry/ mountaineering troops and the Taliban and their Al-Qaeda allies (Foreign fighters) which led to start the War in North West-Pakistan
. In March 2004, heavy and bloody fighting broke out at Azam Warsak, near the South Waziristan
town of Wana, where Pakistani government
's Army infantry troops
faced an estimated 400 Al-Qaeda fighters holed up in several fortified settlements.
It was speculated at the time that Osama bin Laden
's deputy Ayman al-Zawahiri
was among those trapped by the Pakistani Army, but he either escaped or was never among these fighters.
. The town is situated in complex series of White mountain
s in western Pakistan. The town closely aligned with adjacent country, Afghanistan
.
In early months of 2002, Pakistan Army sent and deployed large formation of Infantry and Mountaineering Divisions. The Mountaineering and Infantry Divisions were deployed under the command of Lieutenant-General Ali Jan Aurakzai, who later became Governor of North-West Frontier Province
of Pakistan. The Army Divisions entered the Tirah Valley in the Khyber Agency for the first time since Pakistan independence in 1947. The troops were later proceeded to move into the Shawal Valley of North Waziristan, and later South Waziristan.
In late December 2003, the tension between Pakistan Government and the Waziri tribes mounted as the tribe leaders viewed the action as an attempt to subjugate them.
made first contact with the Taliban forces and Al-Qaeda fighters around the South Waziristan
's small village of Wana. Heavy and intensified fighting between Army infantry troops and Taliban fighters began in the small village of Wana, though Taliban had evacuated the village but Army had suffered heavy casualties. Soon after the bloody confrontation, the Pakistan Army deployed its 20th Mountain Brigade to support operations in the mountainous areas. Two days later, on March 18, 2004, reports began to surface that the Pakistani military had surrounded a “high-value” target, possibly Al-Qaeda's second-in-command Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri
. However, both the Pakistani and U.S. military refused to confirm or deny Zawahiri’s presence. The Pakistani infantry army surrounded the mountain redoubt where Taliban and Al-Qaeda fighters were well dug-in. Heavy fighting ensued, and repeated assaults were beaten back by the Taliban and Al-Qaeda fighters. Pakistani Army forces suffered heavy casualties.
As troops pushed into the mountains, the Taliban forces launched aggressive attacks on Pakistani troops as more and more foreign fighters belonging to Al-Qaeda began to join the fight. The Taliban and Al-Qaeda fighters had set up their main strategic posts at the top of the mountains allowing them to observe the movements of the Pakistani Army infantry and mountaineering troops. The subsequent air strikes led by Pakistan Army Corps of Aviation targeted the suspected posts and hidden positions of Taliban and Al-Qaeda fighters. Following the air strikes, the infantry troops redoubled their efforts to gain control of the mountains.
In the night of March 18, 2004, a heavy and bloody gun battle occurred wherein infantry troops had repeatedly beaten the assaults after assaults. After days of heavy and intensified fighting, the infantry troops gained the control of key positions in the mountains which the Taliban and Al-Qaeda fighters had previously held. Sporadic fighting continued as the infantry units began to pursue the Al-Qaeda fighters. Soon, all the strategic mountain posts were evacuated by the Al-Qaeda fighters as the infantry troops had reached at the top of the mountains. By the dawn, the infantry troops with the help of 20th Mountain Brigade had taken control of mountains. The success came with a heavy human price paid by the Army.
To re-gain their territory, Taliban launched aggressive campaigns against the Army at night which continued until dawn. The Army then responded with decisive attacks, and the battle was soon slipped to adjacent mountains as the Al-Qaida fighters began to escaped. Both sides had suffered heavy human casualties, and next morning, Taliban forces began abandoning their positions fleeing from the area. As requested by the theater commander, additional Army infantry and Mountain troops were rushed to help the remaining fighting troops. The battle ended soon after as reinforcements arrived and took their positions. With the arrival of the mountain troops, the Army intensified pressure on Al-Qaeda fighters to surrender. A week later, the Pakistani Army captured the entire mountainous area along with hundreds of Al-Qaeda fighters.
, possible Tora Bora region. On March 20, 2004, Pakistani infantry troops reported seeing a mysterious "foreigner" fleeing the scene of the siege, and while positive that it was not Osama bin Laden, theorized that it may well have been Dr. Zawahiri.
By March 23, 2004, after a week of heavy and bloody battle, the fighting was over and the Army had taken all of the key Taliban positions defeating the Taliban forces after a week of intensified mountainous battle. Later, the 20th Mountain Brigade of Army took control of the mountains and sat up the well organized posts. The Army also sends its investigators from "M.I.
Directorate for High Value Target Acquisition".
The Army incurred casualties consisting of 49 soldiers killed, 33 wounded, and 11 captured (all of whom were released on March 28, 2004), inflicting on the Taliban losses of 55 fighters killed and 149 captured. Battle of Wana concluded with Army's decisive success, but it has suffered the heavy human casualties. Battle of Wana also led to open the unannounced war in Pakistan
.
Pakistan Army
The Pakistan Army is the branch of the Pakistani Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. The Pakistan Army came into existence after the Partition of India and the resulting independence of Pakistan in 1947. It is currently headed by General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani. The Pakistan...
and the Taliban forces, supported by the foreign fighters of Osama Bin Laden
Osama bin Laden
Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden was the founder of the militant Islamist organization Al-Qaeda, the jihadist organization responsible for the September 11 attacks on the United States and numerous other mass-casualty attacks against civilian and military targets...
's Al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda is a global broad-based militant Islamist terrorist organization founded by Osama bin Laden sometime between August 1988 and late 1989. It operates as a network comprising both a multinational, stateless army and a radical Sunni Muslim movement calling for global Jihad...
. The battle was among one of the bloodiest battle fought by the Pakistan Army, and it ended violently with 49 infantry troop soldiers dead. Hence, it was the first battle that was fought between Pakistani infantry/ mountaineering troops and the Taliban and their Al-Qaeda allies (Foreign fighters) which led to start the War in North West-Pakistan
War in North-West Pakistan
The War in North-West Pakistan is an armed conflict between the Pakistan Armed Forces and armed religious groups such as the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan , Lashkar-e-Islam, TSNM, Arab and Central Asian militants including Al-Qaeda, regional armed movements and elements of organized crime.The armed...
. In March 2004, heavy and bloody fighting broke out at Azam Warsak, near the South Waziristan
South Waziristan
South Waziristan is the southern part of Waziristan, a mountainous region of northwest Pakistan, bordering Afghanistan and covering some 11,585 km² . Waziristan comprises the area west and southwest of Peshawar between the Tochi River to the north and the Gomal River to the south, forming...
town of Wana, where Pakistani government
Government of Pakistan
The Government of Pakistan is a federal parliamentary system, with an indirectly-elected President as the Head of State and Commander in Chief of the Pakistani Armed Forces, and an indirectly-elected Prime Minister as the Head of Government. The President’s appointment and term are...
's Army infantry troops
Pakistan Army
The Pakistan Army is the branch of the Pakistani Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. The Pakistan Army came into existence after the Partition of India and the resulting independence of Pakistan in 1947. It is currently headed by General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani. The Pakistan...
faced an estimated 400 Al-Qaeda fighters holed up in several fortified settlements.
It was speculated at the time that Osama bin Laden
Osama bin Laden
Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden was the founder of the militant Islamist organization Al-Qaeda, the jihadist organization responsible for the September 11 attacks on the United States and numerous other mass-casualty attacks against civilian and military targets...
's deputy Ayman al-Zawahiri
Ayman al-Zawahiri
Ayman Mohammed Rabie al-Zawahiri is an Egyptian physician, Islamic theologian and current leader of al-Qaeda. He was previously the second and last "emir" of the Egyptian Islamic Jihad, having succeeded Abbud al-Zumar in the latter role when Egyptian authorities sentenced al-Zumar to life...
was among those trapped by the Pakistani Army, but he either escaped or was never among these fighters.
Background
Wana is a small town inhabitant by the Wazir TribesWazir (tribe)
Wazirs or Waziris are a Pashtun tribe settled in the North Waziristan and South Waziristan agencies of Pakistan as well in the urban cities of Tank, F.R Bannu,i.e Domel and adjacent villages, Karachi and Lahore. Across the border, they can also be found in Paktia, Khost and Paktika provinces of...
. The town is situated in complex series of White mountain
Safed Koh
Spin Ghar or Safed Kuh or the Indian Caucasus, also known as the Safīd Mountain Range or Morga Range, is a mountain range on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, up to above sea-level at Mount Sikaram, straight and rigid, towering above all surrounding hills...
s in western Pakistan. The town closely aligned with adjacent country, Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
.
In early months of 2002, Pakistan Army sent and deployed large formation of Infantry and Mountaineering Divisions. The Mountaineering and Infantry Divisions were deployed under the command of Lieutenant-General Ali Jan Aurakzai, who later became Governor of North-West Frontier Province
North-West Frontier Province
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa , formerly known as the North-West Frontier Province and various other names, is one of the four provinces of Pakistan, located in the north-west of the country...
of Pakistan. The Army Divisions entered the Tirah Valley in the Khyber Agency for the first time since Pakistan independence in 1947. The troops were later proceeded to move into the Shawal Valley of North Waziristan, and later South Waziristan.
In late December 2003, the tension between Pakistan Government and the Waziri tribes mounted as the tribe leaders viewed the action as an attempt to subjugate them.
The Battle for Mountains
On March 16, 2004, the ArmyPakistan Army
The Pakistan Army is the branch of the Pakistani Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. The Pakistan Army came into existence after the Partition of India and the resulting independence of Pakistan in 1947. It is currently headed by General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani. The Pakistan...
made first contact with the Taliban forces and Al-Qaeda fighters around the South Waziristan
South Waziristan
South Waziristan is the southern part of Waziristan, a mountainous region of northwest Pakistan, bordering Afghanistan and covering some 11,585 km² . Waziristan comprises the area west and southwest of Peshawar between the Tochi River to the north and the Gomal River to the south, forming...
's small village of Wana. Heavy and intensified fighting between Army infantry troops and Taliban fighters began in the small village of Wana, though Taliban had evacuated the village but Army had suffered heavy casualties. Soon after the bloody confrontation, the Pakistan Army deployed its 20th Mountain Brigade to support operations in the mountainous areas. Two days later, on March 18, 2004, reports began to surface that the Pakistani military had surrounded a “high-value” target, possibly Al-Qaeda's second-in-command Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri
Ayman al-Zawahiri
Ayman Mohammed Rabie al-Zawahiri is an Egyptian physician, Islamic theologian and current leader of al-Qaeda. He was previously the second and last "emir" of the Egyptian Islamic Jihad, having succeeded Abbud al-Zumar in the latter role when Egyptian authorities sentenced al-Zumar to life...
. However, both the Pakistani and U.S. military refused to confirm or deny Zawahiri’s presence. The Pakistani infantry army surrounded the mountain redoubt where Taliban and Al-Qaeda fighters were well dug-in. Heavy fighting ensued, and repeated assaults were beaten back by the Taliban and Al-Qaeda fighters. Pakistani Army forces suffered heavy casualties.
As troops pushed into the mountains, the Taliban forces launched aggressive attacks on Pakistani troops as more and more foreign fighters belonging to Al-Qaeda began to join the fight. The Taliban and Al-Qaeda fighters had set up their main strategic posts at the top of the mountains allowing them to observe the movements of the Pakistani Army infantry and mountaineering troops. The subsequent air strikes led by Pakistan Army Corps of Aviation targeted the suspected posts and hidden positions of Taliban and Al-Qaeda fighters. Following the air strikes, the infantry troops redoubled their efforts to gain control of the mountains.
In the night of March 18, 2004, a heavy and bloody gun battle occurred wherein infantry troops had repeatedly beaten the assaults after assaults. After days of heavy and intensified fighting, the infantry troops gained the control of key positions in the mountains which the Taliban and Al-Qaeda fighters had previously held. Sporadic fighting continued as the infantry units began to pursue the Al-Qaeda fighters. Soon, all the strategic mountain posts were evacuated by the Al-Qaeda fighters as the infantry troops had reached at the top of the mountains. By the dawn, the infantry troops with the help of 20th Mountain Brigade had taken control of mountains. The success came with a heavy human price paid by the Army.
To re-gain their territory, Taliban launched aggressive campaigns against the Army at night which continued until dawn. The Army then responded with decisive attacks, and the battle was soon slipped to adjacent mountains as the Al-Qaida fighters began to escaped. Both sides had suffered heavy human casualties, and next morning, Taliban forces began abandoning their positions fleeing from the area. As requested by the theater commander, additional Army infantry and Mountain troops were rushed to help the remaining fighting troops. The battle ended soon after as reinforcements arrived and took their positions. With the arrival of the mountain troops, the Army intensified pressure on Al-Qaeda fighters to surrender. A week later, the Pakistani Army captured the entire mountainous area along with hundreds of Al-Qaeda fighters.
Aftermath
Tunnels were discovered at the site of the battle that led into AfghanistanAfghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
, possible Tora Bora region. On March 20, 2004, Pakistani infantry troops reported seeing a mysterious "foreigner" fleeing the scene of the siege, and while positive that it was not Osama bin Laden, theorized that it may well have been Dr. Zawahiri.
By March 23, 2004, after a week of heavy and bloody battle, the fighting was over and the Army had taken all of the key Taliban positions defeating the Taliban forces after a week of intensified mountainous battle. Later, the 20th Mountain Brigade of Army took control of the mountains and sat up the well organized posts. The Army also sends its investigators from "M.I.
Military Intelligence of Pakistan
In Pakistan Defence Forces, the Directorate-General for the Military Intelligence , is a Pakistan Defence Forces intelligence agency and that is responsible for the military counter-intelligence. It also refers specifically to the intelligence components of the Pakistan Armed Forces. Unlike the...
Directorate for High Value Target Acquisition".
The Army incurred casualties consisting of 49 soldiers killed, 33 wounded, and 11 captured (all of whom were released on March 28, 2004), inflicting on the Taliban losses of 55 fighters killed and 149 captured. Battle of Wana concluded with Army's decisive success, but it has suffered the heavy human casualties. Battle of Wana also led to open the unannounced war in Pakistan
War in North-West Pakistan
The War in North-West Pakistan is an armed conflict between the Pakistan Armed Forces and armed religious groups such as the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan , Lashkar-e-Islam, TSNM, Arab and Central Asian militants including Al-Qaeda, regional armed movements and elements of organized crime.The armed...
.