With large Taliban offensives ongoing across northern Afghanistan, the
insurgent group took a rare opportunity to launch raids in the southern
Kandahar Province, near the Pakistan border, where they targeted army
checkpoints.
The army checkpoints across Shorabak District, which the Taliban has generally controlled anyhow, were quickly overrun, with at least 20 Afghan troops killed and eight others wounded in the attacks.
Taliban spokesman Qari Yusouf Ahmadi took credit for the attack, saying
that the group has seized large quantities of weapons and ammunition
from the checkpoints after taking them over. This is common in such
pushes, to the point that the Taliban seems to sometimes attack regions
just to get equipment.
The Kandahar Province office confirmed thee attack but declined to
provide specific numbers on casualties. There were no indication of any
casualties on the Taliban’s side, though some Taliban were reported
killed in fighting in the north.
Taliban Storm Afghan Checkpoints Near Pakistan Border, Killing at Least 20 Troops
Taliban makes several gains across key Kandahar District
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.
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