42 Taliban Killed By Afghan Forces in Major Assault

In a major assault to retake lost territory, the Afghan Air Force (AAF) has killed 42 Taliban militants in restive Helmand province, officials said Monday. The provincial government in Lashkargah city said in a statement that the raids were conducted Sunday night on the militants’ hideouts in Nawa district, Anadolu reported. Backed by the Allied forces, the Afghan forces also conducted a ground operation to reclaim the district from the militants. “Haji Ahmad, Faizi and Haqbeen, three Taliban commanders are among the dead,” the statement read, adding vast areas of the district had been cleared. Abdul Salam, spokesman for the provincial police headquarters, told Anadolu Agency the Afghan Special Forces killed 42 militants and wounded 27 others in the operation. “Our aim is to retake all lost territory, and eliminate threats posed to the provincial capital, Lashkargah,” he said. On Sunday, the Ministry of Defense (MoD) vowed to retake all lost territory from the militants with the ongoing “Khalid Offensives”. The MoD admitted eight districts across the country remained under the control of the militants.