Image Gallery 2010

07 May 2010
Gizab's Taliban Commander Captured

Australian Special Forces soldiers and their Afghan partner force, the Provincial Police Reserve (PPR), captured the commander of the Taliban forces at Gizab on 30 April.

Taliban commander Mullah Atiqullah and two of his close associates were captured on the afternoon of 30 April in an Afghan-led operation that was the culmination of a community uprising against the Taliban in the northern Uruzgan town of Gizab that began on 21 April.

Mullah Atiqullah was in charge of trying to establish Gizab as a safe haven for the Taliban.

The Taliban failed in Gizab because the people who live were not prepared to tolerate Taliban oppression and intimidation.

Since April 21 the people of Gizab have fought shoulder to shoulder with the Special Operations Task Group and PPR.

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SOTG soldiers board a US Black Hawk helicopter and head out to assist MTF1 last month.

(Date taken: 18 April 2010)
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Members of Australia's Special Operations Task Group (SOTG) prepare to fly into Uruzgan's Baluchi Valley and Chorah regions in support of their fellow Australians in MTF1

(Date taken: 18 April 2010)
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Members of Australia's Special Operations Task Group (SOTG) prepare to fly into Uruzgan's Baluchi Valley and Chorah regions in support of their fellow Australians in MTF1

(Date taken: 18 April 2010)
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An Australian Special Forces soldier keeps an eye out in Uruzgan’s capital Tarin Kot.

(Date taken: 18 April 2010)
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Members of Australia's Special Operations Task Group maintain a defensive position at a compound in Northern Gizab.

(Date taken: 24 April 2010)
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A member of the Special Operations Task Group directs Afghan Government officials and tribal leaders from a helicopter landing zone at Gizab.

(Date taken: 24 April 2010)
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Children at Gizab welcome Australian Speacial Operations Task Group soldiers and Afghan Police to their town as part of Gizab's community uprising against the Taliban.

(Date taken: 24 April 2010)
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A member of the Special Operations Task Group provides security as Gizab locals and Afghan Government officials move about the town.

(Date taken: 24 April 2010)
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A member of the Special Operations Task Group directs helicopters from the US 82nd Airborne Division to a landing zone at Gizab.

(Date taken: 25 April 2010)
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A member of the Special Operations Task Group takes a well earned break overlooking the Gizab bazaar after the town was liberated from the Taliban.

(Date taken: 25 April 2010)
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Members of the SOTG's Afghan partner unit, the Provincial Police Reserve, proudly display the Flag of the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan.

(Date taken: 25 April 2010)
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A young boy stands beneath the recently raised Afghan flag in Gizab.

(Date taken: 25 April 2010)
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Gizab locals gather to watch the spectacle of helicopters from the 82nd Airborne Division bringing supplies to Australian and Afghan soldiers and police.

(Date taken: 26 April 2010)
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Community leaders gather at Gizab to determine a safe and secure future for their community wihout the influence of the Taliban.

(Date taken: 26 April 2010)
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An SOTG soldier and an Afghan official prepare to board a Black Hawk helicopter from the US 82nd Airborne Division after a series of successful shuras at Gizab.

(Date taken: 26 April 2010)
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