American commanders revealed that a battle in the Daychopan district of Zabul province between August 7-10. In a running battle, at least 65 Taliban fighters were killed. Many weapons and documents were recovered. Two weeks later, in the  Korengal valley, in Kunar province, American commandoes, intent on hunting down the local Taliban crew that killed 19 American troops  in June, triggered 29 contacts with armed enemy, resulting in over forty Taliban and al Qaeda dead. The  Korengal valley, which is only a few kilometers from the Pakistani border, and is a route for terrorists entering the country from Pakistan. Recently, several hundred Taliban and al Qaeda gunmen have been assembling in the  valley recently, before dispersing to other parts of southern Afghanistan. The American operations disrupted this and forced many of the hostile gunmen back into Pakistan.