Daesh Terrorists in Afghanistan Kill At Least 15 Taliban
MAZAR-I-SHARIF (Dispatches) – Daesh terrorists attacked the house of a Taliban commander in the northern Afghan province of Sar-e Pul on Tuesday, killing at least 15 people as they were attending a prayer ceremony, the provincial governor’s office said.
The attack, in Sayyad district of Sar-e Pul, followed reports from local officials of fighting between Daesh and Taliban militants in other northern provinces over recent days.
"Two Daesh fighters entered a Taliban commander’s house where a ceremony was under way and opened fire,” said Zabihullah Amani, spokesman for the Sar-e-Pul governor’s office said. He said 15 Taliban were killed and another five wounded.
Northern Afghanistan has become one of the main areas of Daesh activity in Afghanistan as the movement has spread beyond its original base in the eastern province of Nangarhar, where it remains strong.
However establishing a clear picture of the group remains difficult in a remote and often mountainous region, with diverse bands of terrorists and militants often switching sides between the Taliban, Daesh and even the pro-government camp.
In Nangarhar, a local commander known variously as Saba Gul or Mohammad Khorasani was killed by a drone strike on Monday afternoon, the Nangarhar governor’s spokesman Attaullah Khogyani, said.
A former Taliban commander, he moved to Daesh after the group first appeared in Nangarhar in late 2014 and was responsible for hundreds of deaths, Khogyani said.
Elsewhere in Afghanistan, troops raided a Taliban prison in the southern province of Helmand late on Monday, releasing 58 prisoners, officials said.
The Taliban prisoners, including both civilians and members of the security forces, were released following an army raid on a prison in Musa Qala district of Helmand province, according to a statement from the 215 Maiwand army corps.
Separately, Taliban militants attacked three checkpoints of the Afghan border forces in the southern province of Kandahar, killing nine members of the security forces and suffering 25 killed themselves, Kandahar police spokesman Zia Durani said.
In another development, at least 54 people have been released from a prison run by Taliban in Afghanistan's southern province of Helmand, where militants are in control of the majority of districts.
Omar Zwak, a spokesman for the provincial governor, said on Tuesday that the prisoners were freed after a commando unit raided the prison in Musa Qala district late Monday night.
Zwak said there were 32 civilians, 16 police, four soldiers and two military doctors who had been locked up by the militants.
Afghan special forces spokesman Jawid Saleem also confirmed that dozens of people, including security personnel and civilians, were freed from the notorious detention center.
Helmand is one of the most embattled provinces in southern Afghanistan. More than 80 percent of its territory is controlled by Taliban.
The attack, in Sayyad district of Sar-e Pul, followed reports from local officials of fighting between Daesh and Taliban militants in other northern provinces over recent days.
"Two Daesh fighters entered a Taliban commander’s house where a ceremony was under way and opened fire,” said Zabihullah Amani, spokesman for the Sar-e-Pul governor’s office said. He said 15 Taliban were killed and another five wounded.
Northern Afghanistan has become one of the main areas of Daesh activity in Afghanistan as the movement has spread beyond its original base in the eastern province of Nangarhar, where it remains strong.
However establishing a clear picture of the group remains difficult in a remote and often mountainous region, with diverse bands of terrorists and militants often switching sides between the Taliban, Daesh and even the pro-government camp.
In Nangarhar, a local commander known variously as Saba Gul or Mohammad Khorasani was killed by a drone strike on Monday afternoon, the Nangarhar governor’s spokesman Attaullah Khogyani, said.
A former Taliban commander, he moved to Daesh after the group first appeared in Nangarhar in late 2014 and was responsible for hundreds of deaths, Khogyani said.
Elsewhere in Afghanistan, troops raided a Taliban prison in the southern province of Helmand late on Monday, releasing 58 prisoners, officials said.
The Taliban prisoners, including both civilians and members of the security forces, were released following an army raid on a prison in Musa Qala district of Helmand province, according to a statement from the 215 Maiwand army corps.
Separately, Taliban militants attacked three checkpoints of the Afghan border forces in the southern province of Kandahar, killing nine members of the security forces and suffering 25 killed themselves, Kandahar police spokesman Zia Durani said.
In another development, at least 54 people have been released from a prison run by Taliban in Afghanistan's southern province of Helmand, where militants are in control of the majority of districts.
Omar Zwak, a spokesman for the provincial governor, said on Tuesday that the prisoners were freed after a commando unit raided the prison in Musa Qala district late Monday night.
Zwak said there were 32 civilians, 16 police, four soldiers and two military doctors who had been locked up by the militants.
Afghan special forces spokesman Jawid Saleem also confirmed that dozens of people, including security personnel and civilians, were freed from the notorious detention center.
Helmand is one of the most embattled provinces in southern Afghanistan. More than 80 percent of its territory is controlled by Taliban.