The Taliban on Sunday threatened for the first time to attack Afghan polling stations, escalating their bid to derail key elections.
Afghan troops, backed by coalition planes and artillery, battled a strong force of Taliban insurgents overnight and early on Thursday in southern Afghanistan, already reeling from some of the heaviest fighting in years. New fighting erupted late on Wednesday in the Panjwayi district of Kandahar province, a coalition spokesperson said.
Up to 80 Taliban rebels and at least 16 civilians were killed on Monday during a coalition air and ground attack on a village in southern Afghanistan, officials and witnesses said. The United States-led coalition said it called in war planes after troops who were trying to capture insurgents in Kandahar province came under fire.
Taliban militants fought fierce battles with coalition and Afghan forces in a dramatic upsurge of violence in southern Afghanistan, leaving up to 100 people — mostly rebels — dead, officials said on Thursday. Two suicide bombs also rocked the insurgency hit country. One, in western Afghanistan, killed a United States anti-narcotics adviser.