Afghan security forces have killed 65 Taliban in an intense battle in eastern Afghanistan, officials said on Thursday, as fighting rages between the two sides despite ongoing peace talks.
Read also: Afghanistan: towards a return of the Taliban to power
The latest incident happened late Wednesday night after the Taliban stormed an army headquarters building in the Wazi Khwa district of Paktika province.
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The fighting lasted for several hours and in a retaliatory attack by Afghan forces the Taliban suffered heavy losses,
" Paktika police spokesman Shah Mohammad Arian told AFP.
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In the clash, 65 Taliban were killed and 35 others were wounded,
" he added, while he said three police officers were killed and six wounded.
Bakhtiar Gul Zadran, the head of the provincial council of Paktika, confirmed this assessment.
The Taliban did not immediately comment.
This new violence came the day after a Taliban attack in the province of Oruzgan (South), which left 28 Afghan police and paramilitaries dead.
Taliban and Afghan government negotiators have been meeting since September 12 in Qatar, where they are trying to find a way to end 19 years of war.
But after a promising start, talks are now moving slowly, with the two sides still not agreeing on an agenda, while further violence is reported in Afghanistan.
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