KABUL (Dispatches) – At least 16 Taliban militants were killed and four others injured after Afghan army waged an operation in restive southern province of Zabul, the defense ministry said Tuesday.
"The cleanup operation was launched in Shamulzay district on Monday and the initial information found that among those dead were a Taliban divisional commander and three would-be suicide bombers," the ministry said in a statement.
A weapon and ammunition cache, one vehicle and two motorcycles were also destroyed by the army personnel backed by the helicopters, the statement added.
The Afghan and NATO and U.S.-led coalition forces continued mopping-up operations as spring and summer known as fighting season is drawing near in the mountainous country.
The Taliban militant group, which has been waging an insurgency of more than 17 years, has yet to make comments.
In another development, two Afghan policemen have been killed and six soldiers have been captured in operations by the Taliban militant group in the northwestern province of Badghis.
Mohammad Naser Nazari, a member of the provincial council, said the Taliban militants stormed several police and military checkpoints in Qadis district during the early hours of Tuesday. He added that the situation was under control after the arrival of reinforcements and that the militants were chased away.
Other reports said the militants launched a similar raid on a number of other checkpoints in the western province of Farah and the east-central province of Ghazni. Local officials have not yet commented on the attacks. However, a Taliban spokesman claimed later in the day that militants had managed to capture at least two soldiers during a battle in Farah.
The Taliban have increased their operations across the country in recent months, possibly provoked by US President Donald Trump’s announcement of a troop surge in the country.