78 Taliban Militants Killed In Afghanistan In 24 Hrs

Kabul: At least 78 Taliban militants were killed in various operations conducted by Afghan government forces in the past 24 hours, the Ministry of Defence announced on Thursday.

“Forty-four Taliban militants were also wounded and eight others were arrested as a result of Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) operations in Ghazni, Zabul, Herat, Paktika, Balkh, Nimroz, Helmand and Kandahar provinces,” the Ministry said in a statement.

The ANDSF also discovered and seized weapons and defused 36 improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and landmines during the cited period, Xinhua news agency quoted the statement as saying.

The statement didn’t say if there were any casualties on the side of the Afghan security forces.

The Taliban outfit has not made comments on the Ministry’s report so far.

Earlier on Monday, Nine militants were killed in a cleanup operation conducted by government forces in Afghanistan’s Helmand province. Meanwhile, three others were injured during the operation.

A large number of arms and ammunitions were also seized from the Taliban hideouts in the operations launched on Sunday, Xinhua news agency quoted the police as saying.

The security forces have also discovered and defused scores of anti-vehicle and anti-personnel mines from the area, it said.

No casualties have been reported in security personnel or civilians during the operations, the statement said.

Taliban militants, who have intensified activities recently, have not made comment on the casualty report.