Taliban terrorist attack kills at least 15 policemen in north Afghanistan

The Taliban stormed a checkpoint in northern Afghanistan killing at least 15 policemen in the latest attack by the armed group, an official said on Tuesday.

The multi-pronged attack on the checkpoint in the Ali Abad district of northern Kunduz province began late on Monday and set off an hours-long shootout, according to Ghulam Rabani Rabani, a provincial council member.

Along with the 15 policemen killed, two other officers were wounded in the assault, he said.

The attack came as Afghan troops have been battling the Taliban for the past few weeks in Kunduz’s Dashti Archi and Imam Sahib districts, Rabani added.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid claimed responsibility for the checkpoint attack.

The Taliban has a strong presence in Kunduz and controls several of the province’s districts.

The provincial capital, the city of Kunduz, briefly fell to the Taliban in 2015 before the armed group withdrew in the face of a NATO-backed Afghan offensive.

The city is a strategic crossroads with easy access to much of northern Afghanistan as well as the country’s capital, Kabul, about 335km (200 miles) away.

The Taliban pushed back into the city centre again a year later, briefly raising its flag before gradually being driven out again.

The armed group launched another attempt to overrun the city in August but was repelled.

The Taliban now controls nearly half of Afghanistan and has been relentless in its near-daily attacks targeting Afghan security forces, attacks that often inflict heavy casualties.

The fighting has also killed scores of civilians.

Source: Aljazeera