Bomb-makers among 17 killed in Farah, Ghazni

KABUL): Seventeen people, including three policemen and two bomb-makers, have been killed in Farah and Ghazni provinces, officials said on Sunday.

Abdul Khaliq Noorzai, the Khak-i-Safid district chief in Farah, told Pajhwok Afghan News 13 the militants and three policemen were killed when they a security post was attacked in Ghorchi area late on Saturday.

He said a civilian was killed and 14 militants were wounded during the clash. The civilian named Abdullah was killed in Taliban’s fire, Noorzai added.

But a Taliban spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, acknowledged the death of only two fighters. He insisted the civilian was killed by security forces. Three policemen were also killed in the gunbattle, Mujahid added.

A resident of the area, Ismatullah, said eight militants, three policemen and a 90 years old man were killed in the firefight.

Elsewhere, two bomb-makers were killed when an improvised explosive device went off prematurely inside a mosque in the Andar district of Ghazni province.

The incident took place as the militants were busy making bombs in the mosque in Gardi village late on Saturday, said the Andar district chief, Mohammad Qasim Desiwal.

The mosque was destroyed as a result of the heavy explosion, he said, adding civilians suffered no casualties.

A resident of the area, Abdul Bari, said the Taliban entered the mosque after evening prayers. Half an hour after their entry, a heavy explosion occurred that killed both and damaged the mosque.

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