Six Afghan policemen killed in Taliban ambush in Balkh

At least six Afghan police officers have lost their lives after their convoy was ambushed by Taliban militants in the country’s northern province of Balkh, an Afghan official says.

According to Abdul Manan Raoufi, the police operation chief of the province, the militants attacked the convoy on Sunday night in the Dawlat Abad district of Balkh.

He said the ambush happened when the police were en route to the neighboring province of Jawzjan after conducting a military operation in the district.

Raoufi added that a Taliban leader was also killed in the gunfight between Afghan police and the militant group.

Afghanistan is gripped by insecurity more than 14 years after the United States and its allies attacked the country as part of Washington’s so-called war on terror. Although the 2001 attack overthrew the Taliban, many areas across Afghanistan still face violence and insecurity.

Over the past months, the group’s militants have captured some key areas in the north and south of Afghanistan. The militants have also carried out attacks in the capital, Kabul.

SS