Roundup: Afghan militancy, counter-militancy claim 27 lives in 2 days

Militancy and counter-militancy have claimed 27 lives, mostly insurgents in the militancy-plagued Afghanistan over the past two days.

In the latest violent incident, a rocket fired by Taliban militants had killed two children and injured seven others including four children in the eastern Ghazni province on Monday, deputy to provincial government, Mohammad Ali Ahmadi said.

"A rocket fired by Taliban rebels hit Alam Qala village in Deyak district on Monday morning left two innocent children dead and injured seven others including four children, two women and a man," Ahmadi told Xinhua.

Without giving more details, the official added that investigation has been initiated into the case.

Taliban militants fighting the government and are active in parts of Ghazni province including Deyak and Andar districts have yet to claim responsibility for the alleged rocket firing.

However, counter-militancy operations carried out by government forces in different parts of the country have left 25 insurgents dead and injured 20 more others over the past 24 hours, a statement of interior ministry released here Monday said.

"A total of 25 Taliban rebels have been killed and 20 other sustained injuries during cleanup operations across the country over the past 24 hours," the statement asserted.

During the operations, which have been conducted in parts of Nangarhar, Badakhshan, Sar-e-Pul, Kandahar, Oruzgan, Ghazni, Khost and Helmand provinces, nine more insurgents have been captured, the statement contended. It also stressed that the cleanup operations are going on in parts of the said provinces.

Interior ministry also stated that several villages have been liberated from the clutches of militants in Kot district of the eastern Nangarhar province over the said period.

Taliban militants who have intensified activities since launching their annual spring offensive in last April have yet to make comment on the claims made by interior ministry.

Warring sides usually speed up activities to bolster positions in spring and summer commonly known as fighting season in the strife torn Afghanistan.

However, Afghan observers are of the view that the Taliban militants would farther speed up their activities to grab more ground before onset of the harsh winter in the mountainous Afghanistan. Endi