Taliban kill 9 Afghan security forces amid peace push

By Shadi Khan Saif

KABUL, Afghanistan (AA) - The Taliban on Saturday killed at least nine Afghan security forces, the second day of such assaults amid ongoing efforts for peace in the country, officials confirmed.

In an overnight assault, the insurgents killed seven policemen in the northern Kapisa province. Interior ministry spokesman Tariq Aryan told Anadolu Agency the incident took place in the Afghanya valley of the province’s Najrab district.

Three Taliban attackers were also killed in the exchange of fire, a local official said.

In a similar attack, insurgents killed two Afghan security forces in the neighboring Baghlan province, locals said.

The attacks come a day after the insurgents killed at least 24 Afghan security forces in an overnight raid on a joint police and army station in the southern Zabul province.

Atta Jan, a provincial assembly member, confirmed the death toll in Zabul to Anadolu Agency, saying a number of Taliban infiltrators helped stage the assault.

The attack came amid a relative reduction in violence in line with the rejuvenated yet fragile peace process.

Condemning the attack, President Mohammed Ashraf Ghani said it shows the Taliban's reluctance to commit to peace.

Turkey also condemned the attack. "On this occasion, we reiterate that nothing can be achieved by means of violence and call on all parties to end violence to create a proper ground for intra-Afghan negotiations,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement