ZCZC
BFF-31
AFGHANISTAN-UNREST
5 militants killed in preemptive operation in western Afghanistan
KABUL, Jan 31, 2021 (BSS/XINHUA) – Five Taliban militants, who were freed on parole last year from the government’s prisons, were killed during an operation in western province of Herat on Saturday night, the country’s Defense Ministry confirmed on Sunday.
“Last night, Taliban tried to assault local uprising fighters’ checkpoints in Zawul and Shindand districts of Herat. The Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) conducted a preemptive operation, killing five militants and destroying their car bombs,” the ministry said in a statement.
The ANDSF forces launched the raid under their active defense posture, the statement said, adding Taliban divisional commander, Hafaz Mohammadi, was among the killed.
The killed militants were freed from jail on parole last year, according to the statement.
Last year, the Afghan government released more than 6,200 Taliban militants to facilitate the peace negotiations and try to find a solution to the prolonged war in the country.
The Taliban militants have not responded to the report so far.
BSS/XINHUA/FI/1912 hrs