Taliban forces gov’t troops to retreat

KABUL: Taliban insurgents captured a district in northern Afghanistan, forcing government troops to retreat to the provincial capital amid a recent surge in violence, officials said yesterday.

Fighting has escalated sharply in recent weeks, with Afghan officials saying the Taliban has stepped up its attacks since the United States announced plans last month to pull out all US troops by September 11.

The militants seized the district of Barka in the northern province of Baghlan after hours of fighting with Afghan forces, who retreated to the main city, a provincial police spokesman said.

The Taliban suffered heavy losses in the fighting, but a senior security official said at least 10 members of security forces were killed and 16 others captured by the Taliban.

The district fell a day after Afghan security forces fought back a major Taliban offensive in the southern province of Helmand.