23 Afghan Commandos Killed in Fighting in Northern Faryab

Six police also reported wounded in clashes

Heavy fighting is continuing in northern Faryab Province of Afghanistan, with 23 Afghan special forces commandos reported killed on Wednesday. Six police were also reported wounded in fighting in the district.

The Taliban has contested parts of Faryab for weeks, and is putting intense pressure on the special forces. The troops reportedly expected reinforcements, sending vehicles away from the center of the contested district to pick up more fighters.

While the vehicles were gone, the Taliban attacked again in force, and caused many of the casualties. It turns out that the reinforcements largely were not able to be brought into the area.

The district, Dawlat Abad, remains contested. The Taliban were reported to have seized it a week ago, and today’s fighting shows that both sides still have a presence there and are still contesting control of it.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.