Kabul – At least 17 policemen were killed when rebels ambushed several security checkpoints in southern Afghanistan, a government official said Saturday.
“The policemen engaged with rebels for hours in Musa Qala district on Friday night,” said Omar Zwak, the governor’s spokesman for the southern province of Helmand.
He said the clashes were ongoing and reinforcements had been sent to the district.
Local media reported that 10 insurgents were also killed during the clashes.
No group claimed responsibility for the attack.
The pre-dawn raid occurred in volatile Helmand province as the Taliban intensified their countrywide summer offensive.
The insurgents launched their offensive in late April, despite repeated government attempts to reopen peace negotiations.
They have stepped up attacks on government and foreign targets in what is expected to be the bloodiest fighting season in a decade.
Afghan security forces have been struggling to defeat the insurgency, and most US and foreign troops withdrew at the end of last year.
Helmand province saw some of the heaviest combat in 2014.
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