Nearly 300 Taliban killed, hundreds injured in ops by Afghan forces in 48 hours

As the Taliban and mounted an offensive amid the withdrawal of foreign troops from war-torn Afghanistan, as many as nearly 300 members of the group have been killed and hundreds of others wounded in operations by the country’s security forces in different provinces since Saturday, said the ministry of defense has said.

“254 Taliban terrorists were killed and 97 wounded as a result of ANDSF (Afghanistan National Defence and Security Forces) operations in Ghazni, Kandahar, Herat, Farah, Jowzjan, Balkh, Samangan, Helmand, Takhar, Kunduz, Baghlan, Kabul & Kapisa provinces during the last 24 hours. Also, 13 IEDs were discovered & defused by #ANA,” the ministry of defense tweeted on Sunday.

The ministry of defense also said that 12 Taliban terrorists, including four Pakistanis, were killed and 9 others were wounded in an operation conducted by ANDSF in the Barmal district of Paktika province on Saturday night. Another 11 terrorists were killed in the Panjwae district and on the outskirts of the Kandahar provincial centre, it said in another tweet.

There has been a surge in violence in Afghanistan as the Taliban have intensified their offensive against Afghan security forces and civilians and have captured several districts. The Afghan foreign ministry has said that the Taliban has seized over 193 district centres and 19 border districts. The Taliban has also taken control of 10 border crossing points in Takhar, Kunduz, Badakhshan, Herat and Farah provinces which has lead to the complete shutdown of cross border movements and trade in these areas.

Nearly 4,000 ANDSF personnel have been killed, more than 7,000 injured and about 1,600 captured by the Taliban since April 14, the ministry said. As many as 2,000 civilians, including women and children, were killed in the violence, while 2,200 were injured, it added.

Tolo News channel has reported that 70 districts fell to the Taliban in July. The government said that 11 districts have been recaptured from the Taliban in July, however, Yaftal in Badakhshan, Chakhansur in Nimroz, Malistan in Ghazni, Garmsir in Helmand and Guzara in Herat have been taken back by the Taliban.