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Roundup: Afghan forces intensify crackdown as more than 100 Taliban militants killed

Xinhua, March 29, 2017 Adjust font size:

More than 100 militants have been killed mostly in the southern Helmand and western Farah provinces over the past two days as the government forces have intensified operations in the conflict-battered Afghanistan, officials said Wednesday.

A total of 45 Taliban insurgents have been killed and 29 others injured after the government forces backed by aircraft pounded the hideouts of the armed group in the poppy-growing Helmand province since Tuesday, said a statement released by the provincial government.

According to the statement, 22 armed militants have been killed in Bolan locality and 23 more militants neutralized in Spin Koti area since Tuesday morning.

The statement also added that 29 insurgents sustained injuries during operations elsewhere in the southern Helmand province.

Taliban militants who are in control of parts of Helmand province and overran the strategically important Sangin district last week, have also intensified activities elsewhere in Afghanistan to expand their grip.

Similarly, government forces crackdown against militants have left 47 armed Taliban fighters dead and injured 51 others in the western Farah province since Wednesday morning, senior army official in the troubled province Raz Mohammad Oryakhil said.

Taliban main bastion, Shiwan, according to the official, has been demolished in the operations.

The offensives would continue until the insurgents are wiped out from the area, Oryakhil asserted.

More than a dozen Taliban insurgents, according to officials, have been killed in Kunar, Nangarhar, Kunduz, Baghlan and other parts of the insurgency-plagued Afghanistan since Tuesday.

There is no official statement about the casualties of security forces over the past two days. However, according to Taliban militants scores of security personnel have been killed, a claim rebuffed by officials.

Afghan militancy and conflict usually get momentum in spring and summer commonly known as "fighting season" among Afghans. Endit