Qari Ismail, a Taliban commander, was credited with downing an American Special Forces

Special forces

Special forces, or special operations forces are terms used to describe elite military tactical teams trained to perform high-risk dangerous missions that conventional units cannot perform...

 helicopter responding to Operation Red Wing

Operation Red Wing

Operation Red Wings was a failed counter-insurgent mission in Kunar Province, Afghanistan, involving four members of the United States Navy SEALs, which took place on June 28, 2005....

 in June 2005, killing all 16 soldiers aboard.

On 2 October 2003, Ismail, Ahmed Khadr and his son Abdulkareem, al-Jowfi, al-Iraqi and Khalid Habib

Khalid Habib

Khalid Habib was an ascending member of al-Qaeda's central structure in Pakistan and Afghanistan. His nationality has been reported as Egyptian and as Moroccan ....

  were all staying at a 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...

 safe house

Safe house

In the jargon of law enforcement and intelligence agencies, a safe house is a secure location, suitable for hiding witnesses, agents or other persons perceived as being in danger...

. The following day, after Fajr prayer

Fajr

The Fajr prayer is the first of the five daily prayers offered by practising Muslims. The five daily prayers collectively form one pillar of the Five Pillars of Islam, in Sunni Islam, and one of the ten Practices of the Religion according to Shia Islam.The Fajr prayer is mentioned by name in the...

s, Khadr told his son that Pakistani troops had warned a raid was scheduled in the village, and told him to start moving. A few minutes later, a Pakistani helicopter team and hundreds of security forces attacked the village.

In August 2004, Pakistan reported that it had arrested Ismail as a "key element" of 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...

.