Taliban Kills Security Personnel in Afghanistan's South


Taliban Kills Security Personnel in Afghanistan's South

TEHRAN (Tasnim) - Taliban fighters attacked a police headquarters in southern Afghanistan, killing 20 security personnel and seizing three army checkpoints, sources have told Al Jazeera.

Al Jazeera's Jennifer Glasse, reporting from Kabul on Tuesday, said fighting was ongoing in three areas of Helmand province, with clashes raging in the districts of Sangin, Musa Qala and Nawzad.

"In Nawzad, the standoff has been particularly difficult and has been going on for hours with the Taliban taking three army checkpoints and surrounding the district's headquarters," our correspondent reported.

"At least 20 army and police officers have been killed in that attack, and local officials have called for reinforcements."

Thirteen of the victims were police officers and seven were soldiers.

Fighting was also reported in the southern province of Kandahar. Meanwhile, in the eastern province of Wardak, four suicide bombers attacked a local court, with all four of the attackers reported killed, along with two police officers.

The Taliban have launched a wave of attacks around the country since the withdrawal of foreign troops last year.

The group claimed responsibility for an attack on a Kabul guesthouse earlier this month that left 14 people dead, including nine foreigners.

According to the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), in the first three months of 2015, civilian casualties from ground fighting were up eight percent on the same period last year.

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