At least 9 Taliban fighters killed in Afghanistan

At least 9 Taliban fighters killed in Afghanistan

2011-05-25 23:50:39 GMT+7 (ICT)

KABUL (BNO NEWS) -- At least nine Taliban insurgents have been killed in separate clashes in Afghanistan in the past three days, officials said on Wednesday.

Pajhwok Afghan News reported that four insurgents were killed on Tuesday night when police returned fire, after the rebels attacked a border police post in Nazyan district in eastern Nangarhar province. According to the border police commander, there were no police casualties.

A Taliban spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, denied the assailants suffered any casualties and claimed eight policemen were killed during the clash.

Separately, two fighters were killed and a third wounded in a clash with police in Alingar district of neighbouring Laghman province, said the district police chief, Adam Khan.

Another three guerrillas were killed on Monday during an operation by Afghan and International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Kajaki district of southern Helmand province, ISAF said in a brief statement. According to the coalition team leader, the operation's objective was to disrupt the illegal drug trade in the region since sales from opium help finance Taliban operations.

"The illicit production of opium throughout the country is a heavily targeted objective by the Government of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, and eliminating this threat is vital to long-term security, governance and effective development of Afghanistan," said a GIRoA official.

"We are building our government capacity to enhance security, and combat the drug trade that supports insurgency and promotes crime and corruption."

 No civilian casualties or property damage was reported during the operation.

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