99 militants killed in Afghan battle

Kabul: At least 99 Taliban militants and 12 government security personnel have been killed in a fierce and lengthy battle in Afghanistan's Badghis province, officials said on Monday.

The fighting has been raging since Saturday in Bala-Murghab district of the province and left 25 insurgents and 34 security personnel injured, the Defence Ministry said in a statement cited by Efe news.

On Saturday, government forces launched a major counter-attack against militants to push them back from the centre of the district, days after the Taliban overran several security checkpoints in the area on April 4.

Security forces had retreated to their headquarters to avoid civilian casualties as the Taliban were using residential houses as their fighting positions, the statement said.

It added that the Air Force aided Afghan Army commandos, special forces of the police and the National Directorate of Security in their offensive against the militants.

As bodies of the militants lay scattered in the battlefield, the security forces seized or destroyed their weapons and several vehicles, the report said.

According to the Ministry's statement, the 34 injured security personnel were airlifted to hospitals amid heavy fighting.