MAHMOOD RAQI (Pajhwok): Five family members of a Taliban commander were killed in an airstrike in Nijrab district of central Kapisa province last night, an official said on Friday.
The airstrike was called in after the Taliban commander, Maulvi Malik, refused to surrender in Afghania area, local police commander in the area, Khwaja Safi, told Pajhwok Afghan News.
He said the Afghan commando forces surrounded the house of Malik and asked him through a load-speaker to surrender, but instead his gunmen opened fire.
As a result, the soldiers called in an airstrike that hit Malik’s home, killing two women and three children.
He accused Maulvi Malik of his involvement in the killing of 10 local policemen and other terrorist activities.
Deputy governor Abdul Rahman Tawab also confirmed the incident, but he had no information about casualties.
A resident of the area, Farhad, who confirmed the airstrike, said Malik spearheaded anti-government activities in Tagab and Alasai districts and other nearby areas.
He said the airstrike killed Malik’s and his brother’s wives and three children.
With the advent of winter, security forces have begun conducting nighttime raids backed by air support in insecure areas of Kapisa province.
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