Taliban militants kill 2 police, capture 6 soldiers in northwestern Afghanistan
Two Afghan policemen have been killed and six soldiers have been captured in operations by the Taliban militant group in the northwestern province of Badghis.
Mohammad Naser Nazari, a member of the provincial council, said the Taliban militants stormed several police and military checkpoints in Qadis district during the early hours of Tuesday. He added that the situation was under control after the arrival of reinforcements and that the militants were chased away.
Other reports said the militants launched a similar raid on a number of other checkpoints in the western province of Farah and the east-central province of Ghazni. Local officials have not yet commented on the attacks. However, a Taliban spokesman claimed later in the day that militants had managed to capture at least two soldiers during a battle in Farah.
The Taliban have increased their operations across the country in recent months, possibly provoked by US President Donald Trump’s announcement of a troop surge in the country.
Recently, the Taliban have offered to hold direct talks with the US to end the conflict. Washington has said the group has to talk to the government in Kabul. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has already offered direct dialog with the militants, but they have snubbed him so far.
US forces invaded Afghanistan and toppled a ruling Taliban regime some 17 years ago. The ongoing war has failed to bring stability to the country despite the presence of thousands of foreign forces.
According to the UN figures released earlier this year, more than 10,000 Afghan civilians were killed or wounded in the Afghan conflict last year. While the main cause of civilian deaths was said to be militant bombings, the report said US airstrikes as well as government forces inflicted a rising toll.
Airstrikes by US warplanes have significantly increased in recent months against the purported positions of the Taliban and other militant outfits in the crisis-hit country.
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