Conflicts, Attacks Kill 54 in Afghanistan


TEHRAN (Tasnim) - Conflicts and attacks claimed the lives of 54 people, including 44 Taliban militants, in Afghanistan over the past two days, government sources said on Saturday.

In the latest violent incident, armed militants opened fire in Alinegar district of the eastern Laghman province Saturday morning, killing a civilian and injuring three others, provincial government said in a statement.

A total of 44 Taliban militants have been killed during series of operations across the conflict-ridden country over the past 24 hours, Interior Ministry said.

"During the operations which conducted in Ghazni, Kandahar, Paktika, Khost, Uruzgan, Badakhshan, Jowzjan, Sar-e-Pul, Logar and Kunar provinces since Friday, 44 armed Taliban militants have been killed, eight wounded and one was arrested by Afghan National Security Forces," the ministry said.

The security forces have also seized arms and ammunitions, including explosive devices, from militants during the operations.

However, according to officials in Logar province 60 km south of Kabul, five civilians were killed and six others sustained injuries during air raids allegedly conducted by the NATO-led forces on Friday.

Niaz Mohammad Amiri, the deputy to Logar provincial government, told local media that "US forces pursuing Taliban militants mistakenly bombarded a house in Logar Friday morning inflicted casualties on civilians."

Meantime, Mohammad Amin, a local official in Logar province, said, "The air strike occurred at 3:30 a.m. local time Friday in Abjosh village, Baraki Barak district of Logar province, leaving five civilians dead and wounding six others."

NATO-led forces have not confirmed the incident, Xinhua reported.

Moreover, a roadside bomb in the southern Kandahar province claimed four lives, a local official said Saturday.

"A mine planted by militants struck a car in Dand district Friday evening, leaving four persons, including three security personnel and a civilian, dead," spokesman for Kandahar provincial government Samim Khapalwak told reporters.

Two other civilians were wounded in the blast, he added.