News / Afghanistan

24 Taliban militants killed in Afghanistan’s Kunduz: Sources

Saturday, 26 June 2021 4:15 PM [ Last Update: Saturday, 26 June 2021 4:15 PM ]

The file photo shows members of the Afghan Special Operations Forces.

At least 24 members of the Taliban militant group have been killed in clashes with army troops in Afghanistan’s northern province of Kunduz, sources say, amid intensified operations by the militant group to overtake territory in Afghanistan.

At least 16 militants were killed and 10 others wounded when Afghan Special Operations Forces launched operations against the group in Seh Darak, Enayat, and Zakhil localities in Kunduz, the eponymous provincial capital, on Friday night, Khalid Amiri from the special operations forces, told China's state news agency Xinhua.

Kunduz has been the scene of sporadic clashes between the two sides in recent days as Taliban militants have tried to seize the city.

Amiri added that cleanup operations, including night raid operations, would continue before Kunduz was cleared of the Taliban militants.

Dozens of civilians killed as Afghan troops, Taliban clash in northern province

About 30 civilians are killed in the ongoing fierce fighting between Afghan government forces and Taliban militants in the northern province of Kunduz.

The military official also noted that the counterterrorism operations had slowed down as militants were using residential buildings as trenches. He also stressed that the Afghan Special Operations Forces suffered no casualties during the fighting.

Furthermore, eight Taliban militants were eliminated and five others wounded when Afghan National Army troops clashed with militants in locations across the city of Kunduz late Friday night, an unnamed army source told Xinhua.

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Suspected Taliban militants have fired a rocket at a hospital in Afghanistan

Since early May, the Taliban militant group has been engaged in major offensives against Afghan government forces and civilians across the country. The group claims to have seized at least 87 of the country’s 421 districts.

Meanhwhile, the US and other NATO troops prepare to leave Afghanistan after two decades of war and occupation.

Five years of ruling Afghanistan by the Taliban came to an end following the US-led invasion of the country in 2001.

Talks have been held between the Afghan government and the Taliban on and off since the United States reached its own deal with the militants. It is unclear if any negotiations are presently underway.

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