Taliban say dozens of Afghan special forces were killed in their deadly assault (Representation)
Kabul:
A suicide bomber in central Afghanistan targeted an Afghan army convoy of troops, killing eight soldiers, the defense ministry said, while Islamist Taliban terrorists claimed responsibility for the attack amid a backdrop of nationwide escalation of violence.
Clashes have escalated in recent weeks between Afghan government forces and Taliban insurgents after the government failed to release hundreds of Taliban jailed in a prisoner swap agreed to by warring parties.
In a statement, the Defense Ministry said a suicide bomber targeted army troops during Monday’s incident in Sayed Abad district, Wardak province, killing eight soldiers and injuring nine others.
The Taliban, claiming responsibility, said dozens of Afghan special forces were killed in their latest deadly assault on government forces, who suffered many casualties in recent fighting.
A pact signed by the United States and the Taliban in Doha in February called for a withdrawal of foreign forces from the war-torn country in exchange for security guarantees from terrorists.
But negotiations between the Afghan government and the Taliban for a peace settlement ending the 18-year-old war have been delayed due to the release of nearly 600 Taliban prisoners, Kabul says, implicated in major attacks. .
As part of the Doha deal, the Afghan government released over 4,000 Taliban prisoners and the terrorist group freed hundreds of government soldiers.
(Reporting by Abdul Qadir Sediqi; Written by Hamid Shalizi; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
