Detainee Dies in Afghanistan

One of a small number of suspected Al Qaeda and Taliban detainees captured in a U.S.-led military operation in eastern Afghanistan has died of illness at a military detention facility, the U.S. Central Command said Wednesday.

“Preliminary reports indicate the detainee died of complications from tuberculosis, pneumonia and kidney failure” on Tuesday, the command said in a release from its headquarters in Tampa, Fla.

The unidentified man was captured Monday during Operation Anaconda in the high mountain region around Gardez and transferred to the facility at Bagram air base, north of Kabul, the capital, the release said.

“He had these conditions prior to his arrival at the facility,” the statement said.