NATO and Afghan forces killed a former Guantanamo detainee who had become a key al-Qaeda affiliate after returning to Afghanistan, officials said Saturday.
Sabar Lal Melma, who was released from Guantanamo in 2007 after five years of detention, had been organizing attacks in eastern Kunar province and funding insurgent operations, NATO spokesman Capt. Justin Brockhoff said.
A NATO statement described Melma as a “key affiliate of the al-Qaeda network” who was in contact with senior al-Qaeda members in both Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Troops surrounded Melma’s house in Jalalabad city on Friday night and shot him dead when he emerged from the building holding an AK-47 assault rifle. Several other people were detained.
A guard at the house, Mohammad Gul, said a group of American soldiers scaled the walls of the compound around 11 p.m. and stormed the house, shooting Melma in the assault. Three others were detained, Gul said.
Melma had been detained for about five days in August, Gul said.
