KABUL (AP) - An American soldier, who disappeared after walking
off his base in eastern Afghanistan with three Afghan counterparts,
is believed captured, officials said Thursday.
Spokeswoman Capt. Elizabeth Mathias said the soldier disappeared
Tuesday.
"We understand him to be have been captured by militant forces.
We have all available resources out there looking for him and
hopefully providing for his safe return," Mathias said.
Mathias did not provide details on the soldier, the location
where he was captured or the circumstances.
The news broke as thousands of U.S. Marines launched a major
anti-Taliban offensive in southern Afghanistan. The missing soldier
was not part of that operation.
"We are not providing further details to protect the soldier's
well-being," she said.
Afghan Police Gen. Nabi Mullakheil said the soldier went missing
in the Mullakheil area of eastern Paktika province, where there is
an American base.
The soldier was noticed missing during a routine check of the
unit on Tuesday and was first listed as "duty status whereabouts
unknown," a U.S. defense official said on condition of anonymity.
It wasn't until Thursday that officials said publicly that he
was missing and described him as "believed captured." Details of
such incidents are routinely held very tightly by the military as
it works to retrieve a missing or captured soldier without giving
away any information to captors.
Initial reports indicated that the soldier was off duty at the
time he went missing, having just completed a shift, the official
said on condition of anonymity because details are still sketchy.
The missing man is an enlisted soldier, and his family has been
notified.
Two U.S. defense sources said the soldier "just walked off"
post with three Afghan counterparts after he finished working. They
said they had no explanation for why he left the base. He was
assigned to a combat outpost, one of a number of smaller bases set
up by foreign forces in Afghanistan, the officials said.
Zabiullah Mujaheed, a spokesman for the Taliban, could not
confirm that the soldier was with any of their forces. A myriad of
insurgent groups operate in eastern Afghanistan, and the Taliban is
only one of them.
The most important insurgent group operating in that area is
known as Haqqani network and is led by Siraj Haqqani, whom the U.S.
has accused of masterminding beheadings and suicide bombings.
