Monitoring Desk
KANDAHAR: Dozens of Taliban fighters were reported dead and wounded after they stormed the centre of Nesh district of Kandahar province, police said Tuesday.
The Taliban fighters attacked the centre of Nesh district from all the four sides but faced strong retaliation from the security forces, said General Abdul Raziq, police chief of Kandahar province.
The fighting lasted till Tuesday’s morning wherein 43 Taliban were killed and 20 more wounded, he told Afghan media outlet.
The security forces destroyed Taliban weapons and moveable equipment and seized some others, he said, adding there were no casualties to security forces.
Defense ministry spokesman Daulat Waziri, meanwhile, said air strikes targeted anti-government gunmen in Nesh district, killing and wounding numerous gunmen.
He said the airstrikes were part of joint operation launched by Afghan and NATO forces, adding the strikes and operation would continue.
Taliban spokesman Qari Muhammad Yousaf Ahmadi told AIP that their fighters captured two security posts in the Lado and Barina areas of Nesh district and caused casualties to tens of troops.
He claimed that 17 bodies of security men were still lying in the area, adding only four Taliban were killed and wounded in the clash.
