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See also:	Other events of 2009 List of years in Afghanistan

Events from the year2009 inAfghanistan

• President:Hamid Karzai
• First Vice President:Ahmad Zia Massoud thenMohammed Fahim
• Second Vice President:Karim Khalili
• Chief Justice:Abdul Salam Azimi

• 10 January - Tribesmen use vehicles to block the road to protest a raid by Pakistani counter-narcotics forces that left one villager dead. The protesters withdraw 4 days later after police promise to take their complaints to provincial authorities.^[1]

• February 6–7 - British and Afghan forces carry outOperation Diesel nearSangin,Helmand Province.^[2]

• 1 April -
  • Four suicide attackers stormKandahar provincial council offices, killing 13 people including senior government officials; the attackers are disguised in Afghan military uniforms.^[3]
  • Taliban spokesmanZabihullah Mujahid dismisses a U.S. reconciliation offer, insisting foreign troop withdrawal is the only way to end conflict.^[3]
• 7 April - Afghan soldiers kill three insurgents, and three soldiers are wounded, during an ambush in westernFarah.^[4]
• 9 April - Asuicide bomber targets the counternarcotics police inLashkar Gah,Helmand Province, killing five people including two police officers.^[4]
• 12 April - Prominent female politicianSitara Achakzai is assassinated by Taliban gunmen inKandahar after a council meeting.^[4]
• 13 April - The Taliban publicly execute a young couple inNimroz Province for trying to elope, shooting them in front of a mosque.^[4]
• 15 April - About 3,000 new U.S. troops are deployed nearKabul to push back theTaliban, improving security but increasing an expectation of short-term violence to rise.^[5]
• 16 April - Afghan police arrest the two men accused of killingSitara Achakzai.

• 4 May - TheGranai airstrike kills 86-147 people, mostlychildren, when American aircraft bomb a village inFarah Province.^[6]

• 19 June -Operation Panther's Claw is launched to secure key areas inHelmand; there is heavy fighting and significant casualties, including Lt ColRupert Thorneloe’s death. The first stage is declared successful 8 days later, followed by efforts to hold territory.^[7]
• 21 June - Two U.S. servicemembers are killed and six wounded in anindirect-fire attack onBagram Airfield; Afghan and coalition forces also detain four suspected militants inGhazni province.^[8]

• 2 July -Operation Strike of the Sword begins. It is a major US-led offensive inHelmand province targeting Taliban strongholds, involving 4,000Marines and Afghan troops, resulting in partial coalition gains and improved security before the presidential elections.^[9]
• 18 July - A U.S.F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jet crashes in eastern Afghanistan, killing both crew members.^[10]
• 19 July - A British soldier is killed by an explosion inHelmand province; a civilianMi-8 transport helicopter crashes atKandahar Air Field, killing 16 people.^[10]
• 20 July - Four U.S. soldiers are killed by aroadside bomb in eastern Afghanistan; a BritishTornado GR4 fighter jet crashes atKandahar Air Field, but both crew members are ejected safely with minor injuries.^[10]

• 4-5 August -U.S. Army Rangers raid an enemy camp inKhost Province, killing 20 insurgents and destroying weapons; Staff Sgt. Michael E. Norton rescues two comrades under heavy fire.^[11]

• 11 September - TheInternational Council on Security and Development reports theTaliban has a permanent presence in 80% ofAfghanistan and substantial presence in 17%, but critics say the methodology exaggerates control.^[12]
• 3-4 September - Abattle by Spanish and Italian forces ofNATO'sAfghan branch against Taliban forces and militant Tajik tribals erupts. 1 Spanish soldier and 3 insurgents are injured, and 13 insurgents are killed.^[13][14]
• 4 September - TheKunduz airstrike kills up to 179 people. An AmericanF-15E fighter jet strikes two fuel tankers captured byTaliban insurgents; a large number of civilians are also killed in the attack.^[15]
• 9 September - ASpecial Boat Service–Afghan unit, backed bySFSG, rescues journalistStephen Farrell from theTaliban inKunduz; several Taliban are killed, along with one SFSG soldier, Farrell's interpreter, and two civilians.^[16][17]

• 28 October - An attack on a guesthouse housingUN election staff kills five UN personnel and threeAfghans, causing the relocation or removal of 600 international UN staff.^[18]

• 6 November -Ambassador Eikenberry warnsHillary Clinton that more troops will delay Afghan self-reliance and prolongU.S. withdrawal.^[19]

• 7 December -Afghan President Karzai declares that it may be five years before his army is ready to take on the insurgents. Karzai also mentions that Afghanistan's security forces will need U.S. support for another 15 to 20 years.^[20][21]
• 17 December - The Taliban offered to give the U.S. "legal guarantees" that they will not allow Afghanistan to be used for attacks on other countries. There was no formal American response.^[22]
• 16-18 December -Operation Septentrion: AnISAF mission inUzbin Valley is conducted by French, US, and Afghan troops to reclaim Taliban-held areas; brief combat leaves several US wounded and at least one Taliban dead.
• 27 December -Night raid on Narang: ANATO-authorized night raid inNarang kills 10 civilians, mostly schoolchildren, sparking condemnation and protests.^[23]

In overall 2009, 520 NATO soldiers killed. 317 US soldiers, 108 UK soldiers and 95 Other NATO soldiers killed in 2009.

• 2008 in Afghanistan
• other events of 2009
• 2010 in Afghanistan
• Timeline of the War in Afghanistan (2001-present)
• Coalition combat operations in Afghanistan in 2009

• Human Rights First;Undue Process: An Examination of Detention and Trials of Bagram Detainees in Afghanistan in April 2009 (2009)

• 2009 in Afghanistan
• Timelines of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)
• Years of the 21st century in Afghanistan
• 2009 in Asia
• 2009 by country
• 2000s in Afghanistan

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