ZCZC
BFF-43
AFGHANISTAN-CLASH
15 security force members killed in clashes in N. Afghanistan
KUNDUZ, Afghanistan, June 23, 2020 (BSS/XINHUA) – Fifteen Afghan national security force members were killed and seven others wounded in Taliban militants’ attacks in two Afghan provinces on Monday night, local officials said Tuesday.
In one attack, nine soldiers of Afghan Civil Order Force of national army and five militants were killed and six soldiers were wounded after Taliban stormed a security checkpoint in Archi district, Kunduz province, district chief Naruddin Nazari told Xinhua.
Taliban insurgents were forced back from the site in the district, in the northeastern of provincial capital Kunduz city.
In neighboring Balkh province, six police officers were killed and another wounded in a similar incident in Balkh district in the northwestern of provincial capital Mazar-i-Sharif city, Munir Farhad, provincial government spokesman, told Xinhua.
The fresh clashes raised questions about a peace deal inked between the United States and the Taliban in Qatar in February, which paved the way for a phased U.S. force withdrawal.
Presently, more than 10,000 foreign forces, including some 8,600 Americans, are serving in Afghanistan to train and assist local security forces in their fight against the insurgents.
BSS/XINHUA/FI/ 1953 hrs