Battle of Wana

Not to be confused with Battle of Wanat.

Battle of Wana
Military Intelligence map: The area involved in the fighting.
Date March 16 – March 23, 2004 (7 days) Location {{{place}}} Result Pakistani victory
Belligerents
Pakistan	al-Qaeda Pro-Taliban Pakistani mujahideen Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan
Commanders and leaders
Ali Jan Orakzai	Ayman al-Zawahiri Osama bin Laden Tohir Yoʻldosh (WIA) Naik Muhammad † Noor Wali Mehsud Template:End plainlist
Units involved
Pakistan Armed Forces Pakistan Army 9th Infantry Division 4th Cobra Squadron 20th Mountain Brigade Pakistan Air Force	al-Qaeda and TTP Mujahedeen forces
Strength
~7,000 4–8 F-7 & F-16 jets ~50 ISI CAD members Template:End plainlist	400 al-Qaeda fighters
Casualties and losses
17 soldiers killed 11 soldiers captured 33 soldiers wounded Template:End plainlist	55 al-Qaeda fighters killed 150 fighters captured Template:End plainlist

Template:War in North-West Pakistan The Battle of Wana was a March 2004 military engagement between the Pakistan Army and members of Osama Bin Laden's al-Qaeda at Azam Warsak, near the South Waziristan town of Wana. The army troops and intelligence paramilitary soldiers faced an estimated ~500 al-Qaeda foreign fighters holed up in several fortified settlements. The fighting ended with 17 soldiers dead.

It was speculated at the time that Osama bin Laden's deputy Ayman al-Zawahiri was among those trapped by the Pakistan Army, but he either escaped or was never among these fighters. After weeks of fighting, the ISPR admitted that it was actually Tohir Yoldeshev, leader of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, who was hiding there.