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Roundup: Afghan forces kill 6 militants in N. Afghanistan, Taliban destroys pylon

Xinhua, February 21, 2016 Adjust font size:

Afghan security forces during operations against Taliban militants have killed six armed insurgents in the northern Jauzjan province with Shiberghan as its capital 390 km north of Kabul on Sunday, an army spokesman in the province, Reza Rezae said.

"The clash erupted after Taliban militants attacked security checkpoints in Qoshtapa district Sunday morning and the troops returned fire, killing six rebels," Rezae told Xinhua.

He also noted that the operations would last until militants were swept out from the area.

Meanwhile, the Taliban fighters in a bid to mount pressure on government, blown up a power pylon in the northern Baghlan province with Pul-e-Khumri as its capital 160 km north of Kabul on Sunday, adding to power shortage in the capital city of Kabul, a local official said.

"Taliban rebels blown up a power pylon in a village in Baghlan-e-Markazi district of Baghlan province today," director of power department in Baghlan province, Ghulam Hussain Haider told reporters.

The militants early this month destroyed several pylons in Dand-e-Shahabudin district, plunging the capital city of Kabul to darkness over the past three weeks.

Although the security forces have been fighting Taliban in Dand-e-Shahabudin and Dand-e-Ghori districts of Baghlan over the past nearly one month, the government has yet to restore power to Kabul.

In a related development, Afghan National Directorate for Security (NDS) or the country's spy agency on Sunday reported arresting six Haqqani militants, the military wing of Taliban outfit operating in Kabul and the eastern region of the country.

"Six militants of Haqqani network including two local leaders of the armed outfit have been captured in the eastern Khost province," said a statement of NDS released on Sunday.

Taliban outfit has yet to comment on military developments in the country on Sunday.

Taliban militants, according to local observers have intensified activities ahead of the proposed peace talks with the government expected to be held in the coming months. Enditem