At least 34 security guards, including senior police officers, were killed in a Taliban attack in Takhar province.
Dozens of members of the Afghan security forces were killed and many more injured in an attack by the Taliban in northern Takhar province.
Takhar Provincial Health Director Abdul Qayoum told AFP on Wednesday that 34 security guards were killed in an ambush, including the provincial deputy chief of police.
At least eight other people were injured in the incident, which took place overnight in Baharak district, a province contested between the Taliban and government forces.
Local politicians put the death toll at up to 42, the DPA news agency reported.
Baharak is one of the districts in Takhar Province, where 11 of the 16 districts have been largely controlled by Taliban fighters for years.
Earlier this month, the Taliban launched their first large-scale attack since a peace agreement was signed with the US in February in Helmand province [File: Watan Yar/EPA]”The fighting continues and the Taliban have also suffered heavy losses,” Jawad Hejri, a spokesman for the governor of Takhar Province, told AFP.
Hejri said security forces were on their way to an operation in Baharak when they were attacked by the Taliban.
“The Taliban had taken a stand in the houses in the area. They attacked our armed forces, which were there for an operation against the enemy, ”he said.
The Taliban have not yet commented on the attack.
After the Taliban’s campaign in Helmand, the Takhar attack is believed to be the group’s second major offensive in less than a month.
Earlier this month, thousands of families were displaced by bloody conflict in southern Helmand Province.
The mounting violence in Afghanistan comes despite the ongoing peace talks between government officials and the Taliban in Qatar that began last month.
The armed group has so far refused to accept a ceasefire.
Comments are closed.