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Afghan official: Taliban hit southern city, kill 12 police

Afghan official: Taliban hit southern city, kill 12 police

By ASSOCIATED PRESS

Afghan soldiers keep watch during a battle with the Taliban in Kunduz Province, Afghanistan September 28, 2015. Afghan Taliban fighters on Monday seized control of a 200-bed hospital in Kunduz city in the north, a spokesman for the militants said.The Taliban launched a fierce offensive from three directions on Kunduz just after dawn, raising fresh fears parts of the provincial capital could fall into their hands. REUTERS/Stringer

KANDAHAR: An Afghan policeman says 12 of his men were killed by Taliban fighters who attacked checkpoints around Lashkar Gah, the capital of southern Helmand province.

Haji Gran, chief of the city's police district 2, said Tuesday that the Taliban attacked four checkpoints late on Monday, killing 12 and wounding another 11 policemen. Lashkah Gar has been under threat of Taliban takeover for months as insurgents have been slowly taking control of Helmand since the beginning of the year. The provincial spokesman, Omar Zwak, says Khanashin district in the south of the province had fallen to the Taliban after coming under attack on Monday. He says that in recent days, around 45 members of Afghan security forces have been killed in fighting there and more than 15 have been taken captive.