12 militants killed in Afghanistan: official

Some 12 Taliban militants have been killed as the Afghan security forces carried out cleanup operations in different provinces within the last 24 hours, said the country's Interior Ministry on Friday.

"The Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) carried out cleanup operations in Helmand, Zabul, Kandahar, Ghazni, Badghis, Takhar, Wardak, Kunduz, Faryab, Jawzjan, and Kunar provinces over the past 24 hours. As a result, 12 militants were killed, two wounded and four others were detained by the ANSF," the ministry said in a statement providing daily operational updates.

The statement did not disclose if there were any casualties on the side of security forces.

The Taliban-led violence continues in Afghanistan. Security forces have pressed on to clear the militants in restive provinces, while the Taliban responds by bombing and armed attacks.

Earlier on Friday morning, four militants were killed and two Afghan soldiers wounded after militants attacked security checkpoints in Dangam district of eastern Kunar province while three civilians wounded in a roadside bombing in southern Kandahar province.

The ANSF also recovered and defused three landmines recently planted by the militants in Parwan and Nimroz provinces, according to the statement. Endi