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AFGHANISTAN-UNREST
8 militants killed in northern Afghan province
MAIMANA, Afghanistan, Dec 19, 2018 (BSS/Xinhua) – At least eight militants
were killed in two separate incidents in Afghanistan’s northern province of
Faryab on Tuesday, local police said Wednesday.
In one incident, four Taliban militants were killed and seven others
wounded after the Afghan Air Force struck a Taliban hideout in restive Dawlat
Abad district, provincial police spokesman Karim Urush told Xinhua.
In neighboring Shirin Tagab district, four Taliban militants were killed
and two others wounded after an improvised explosive device (IED) they were
planting to target security forces detonated prematurely, according to Urush.
Fighting has escalated in Afghanistan as the Taliban insurgency spreads
from its traditional strongholds in the south and east to the once peaceful
region in the north, where Taliban have been recruiting from among the youth.
Afghan security forces, backed by the U.S.-led NATO coalition troops, have
increased ground and air offensives against militants within the past few
months as the Taliban militant group has been attempting to take territory
and consolidate its positions ahead of winter in the Central Asian country.
BSS/XINHUA/FI/ 1722 hrs