HERAT: At least 17 Afghan soldiers were killed when Taliban fighters stormed a military base in western Afghanistan, hours before the group announced a ceasefire, officials said on Saturday.
The Taliban claimed the Friday night attack, which Herat provincial governor spokesman Jilani Farhad told AFP, killed 17 members of the Afghan security forces and wounded another. There also were a number of Taliban casualties in the Zawol district ambush, Farhad said, but he could not provide exact figures. Zawol district governor Mohammad Saeed Sarwari confirmed the attack and the death toll.