Afghan forces kill 36 Taliban in 'preemptive attacks'

At least 36 Taliban insurgents have been killed and five others injured in air and ground offensives by Afghan forces, officials said on Sunday.

According to the Afghan National Army, the Taliban were planning attacks in the restive Kandahar province, prompting security forces to target them through air raids and ground offensives on Saturday evening.

It claimed in a statement that insurgents from various parts of the province had gathered in Joy-e-Lahore, Dasht-e-Bolan, and Kohak areas of Arghandaab district to stage assaults on government forces.

While the Taliban are yet to comment, Mohammad Akbar Nagahani, a Kandahar-based civil society activist, told Anadolu Agency that Afghan security forces and the Taliban have been engaged in deadly clashes in Arghandaab for weeks now.

“The government forces have been conducting a security operation against the Taliban... no civilians are left, families have fled the fighting,” he said.

As many as 2,958 civilians lost their lives in Afghanistan in 2020, according to the country's Independent Human Rights Commission.

Violence has not abated in the war-torn country despite peace talks between Kabul and the insurgents continuing in Doha, Qatar since Sept. 12, 2020.

The new US administration has announced it will review the peace deal the country signed with the Taliban last February.