Seven security men among 41 militants killed in Afghanistan

SHIBERGHAN: Seven government security forces and 34 Taliban militants have been killed and 31 militants wounded in clashes in Afghanistan's northern province of Jawzjan since early Tuesday, an official said on Thursday.

In one incident, the Taliban attacked a security checkpoint in Aqcha district of the province, but the clashes left 27 members of the group dead and 20 others wounded, Fraidoon Aniq, the provincial government spokesman, told Xinhua.

Person among the killed was Khairullah, the Taliban deputy shadow governor for Jawzjan, he said.

In the neighbouring Qush Tepa district, seven Taliban militants have been reported dead and 11 others wounded during a clash between the militants and security forces, said the spokesman.

The source also confirmed the death of seven security force members during the two-day clashes. Jawzjan has long been the scene of heavy clashes between Taliban and security forces.

The Afghan National Defence and Security Forces control most of Afghanistan's population centers and all of 34 provincial capitals, but Taliban insurgents remain active in rural areas, staging coordinated large-scale attacks against Afghan cities and districts since early April when the militant group launched a yearly offensive.