Hundreds of Taliban storm Kamdish district checkpoints

PAROON (PAN and raided police outposts in the Kamdish district of eastern Nuristan province, Brig. Gen. Aminullah Amarkhel, the eastern border police commander, told Pajhwok Afghan News on Tuesday.

Amarkhel said the attack, which culminated with the deaths of 12 Pakistani Taliban, started at 1:00 am Tuesday and ended eight hours later.  One police officer was also killed, and three more suffered injuries in the attack, he said, adding that the dead bodies of the Pakistani Taliban remained in the area.

He said that the fighting has ended and the Taliban have fled the area.

Amarkhel rejected the claim of the Taliban spokesman that Taliban fighters captured 14 police checkpoints in the district.

He said Taliban have torched a number of houses in the area while fleeing the scene of the battle.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told Pajwhok that three Taliban fighters were killed and seven more injured in the Gawardish engagement. He claimed they had captured four police outposts and inflicted causalities on 12 border police. He confirmed that the fighting had stopped, and that the Taliban fighters had left the area.

Today’s attack was the first Taliban attack on Nuristan province since they raided the Do Ab district last month.

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