24 Taliban killed in Helmand joint airstrikes

LASHKARGAH (Pajhwok): Twenty-four militants have been killed, including a notorious commander, during joint airstrikes by Afghan and American forces in southern Helmand province, officials said on Tuesday.

Another three Taliban gunmen were wounded in the joint air raids that pounded the rebels in Loymand and Bolan areas near Lashkargah, the provincial capital, and Nad Ali districts on Monday night, said Lt. Col. Mohammad Rasoul Zazai, a spokesman for the Maiwand Military Corps.

He told Pajhwok Afghan News the operations left 24 insurgents dead and three others wounded, with the joint force recapturing a number of areas in the centre of Lashkargah city and Nad ali district.

A security official told Pajhwok a notorious Taliban commander Asmatullah and his brother were among the dead. Asmatullah was Taliban-designated mayor for Lashkargah and the military in-charge in Greshk district.

Omar Zwak, the governor’s spokesman, confirmed Asmatullah’s killing and said the Taliban suffered huge casualties in the past 24 hours.  Four security personnel were wounded during the period.

Taliban’s spokesman Qari Yousof Ahmadi claimed security forces suffered heavy causalities during the joint operation.

The rebels are in control of six of Helmand’s 13 districts — a poppy rich region.

sa/ma

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