Taliban fighters attacked police posts in southern and south-eastern Afghanistan overnight, sparking battles that left 16 rebels and five policemen dead, police said Saturday.
The attacks occurred late Friday, the same day a commander announced Taliban fighters had ambushed a convoy ferrying supplies to foreign troops, killing at least 14 guards and drivers in one of the biggest incidents of its kind. Insurgents stormed a police post near the Uruzgan capital Tirin Kot, touching off a battle that lasted hours, provincial police chief General Mohammad Qasim told AFP.
"Five Taliban and two police were killed and another 10 Taliban and four police were wounded," he said. Taliban spokesman Yousuf Ahmadi said the movement was responsible.
In a separate incident, the militants attacked a police post on the Kabul-Kandahar highway in Qalat, capital of Zabul province, police detection commander Mohammad Asif told AFP. "Two Taliban were killed and six wounded. Luckily there were no casualties to police forces."
In a similar attack in south-eastern Khost province, one policeman and five militants were killed in a four-hour battle in Gurbuz district, police commander Basheer Ahmad Kochi told AFP.