20 militants killed in Afghan air strike

Air raid on Taliban hideout kills local chief of ‘Red Unit’

At least 20 Taliban militants were killed and four large insurgents’ weapons and ammunition depots destroyed after US-led Nato coalition forces launched an air strike in Afghanistan’s Baghlan province overnight, an official said yesterday.

The strike was conducted on a Taliban hideout near Aka Khel village, Dahana-i-Ghori district on Friday night, Hanif Rezai, spokesman of Army Corps 209 Shaheen based in the region, told Xinhua News Agency. Among those killed was a Taliban local leader, who served as commander of the group’s Sara Ketta or Red Unit in the province.

Embattled Afghan city

In a separate incident, Taliban divisional commander Maulvi Salauddin was killed along with his two associates after Afghan Army commandos launched an operation in the same district on Friday night. Salauddin also served as deputy shadow district chief for Dahana-i-Ghori.

Meanwhile, both Taliban and government forces claimed they were in control of the eastern Afghan city of Ghazni yesterday, after insurgents stormed the provincial capital, triggering fierce fighting.

Afghan officials said they were in control of Ghazni late Friday with authorities in Kabul saying security forces were conducting a clearance operation targeting Taliban fighters who had taken up positions in residential homes.

But information about who controlled the city was difficult to confirm with power and mobile services cut to the area after the Taliban destroyed a telecommunications tower, according to Ghazni MP Shah Gul Rezaye.

“The central government said the situation in Ghazni was under their control, but we managed to contact officials in Ghazni who said that fighting was underway in areas surrounding Ghazni,” said the parliamentarian. Rezaye said additional reinforcements had been rushed to Ghazni late on Friday, after US forces deployed attack helicopters and launched at least one drone strike to push back Taliban fighters. The Taliban, however, claimed victory saying their fighters were now in control of Ghazni after routing Afghan forces.

Both Taliban and government forces claimed they were in control of the eastern Afghan city of Ghazni on Saturday, after insurgents stormed the provincial capital.