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Afghan Forces and Taliban Clash After Deadly Assault in Helmand Province Taliban Infiltrators Assault Afghan Government Sites in Helmand
(about 2 hours later)
KABUL, Afghanistan — Afghan security forces were battling Taliban assailants who had attacked a number of government buildings in Helmand Province on Wednesday, officials said. KABUL, Afghanistan — Taliban infiltrators stormed Afghan government buildings in Helmand Province on Wednesday, battling security forces for more than 10 hours before being killed, officials said.
As many as 10 Taliban fighters armed with light and heavy weapons, some with suicide vests, had stormed the police and intelligence buildings in Gereshk district, but resistance from the Afghan forces diverted their attack, the presidential envoy who was in charge of the fighting, Abdul Jabar Qahraman, said Wednesday afternoon. The attack, on police and intelligence buildings in the Gereshk District of Helmand, involved as many as 10 insurgent fighters who wearing police uniforms and suicide vests, according to Abdul Jabar Qahraman, the presidential envoy sent to manage the pitched battle against the Taliban in Helmand. The Taliban used their website to confirm they were behind the attack.
The fighting, which blocked the main highway connecting the south and west of Afghanistan, continued for nearly eight hours after the assault began. Seven of the insurgents were killed, and three fled into a residential building that was under construction, Mr. Qahraman said. Helmand is Afghanistan’s largest province in terms of territory and opium production, and it has been the site of the Taliban’s biggest gains over the past year, with the insurgents controlling or contesting most of the province’s 14 districts.
A police official at the site of the attack said that three police officers had been killed and five had been wounded. Commando forces had arrived at the scene but had not managed to enter the residential building. Fears that the insurgents might overrun the entire province, including the provincial capital, Lashkar Gah, have drawn back hundreds of American soldiers and advisers to the province to help Afghan security forces plan the city’s defense.
The Taliban, on their website, claimed responsibility for the attack. The fighting on Wednesday blocked the main highway connecting the south and west of Afghanistan for most of the day. Seven of the insurgents were killed in the early hours, Mr. Qahraman said, but three fled into a residential building that was under construction and put up a tough resistance. They were finally gunned down after commando forces entered the battle.
Helmand, Afghanistan’s largest province in terms of territory and opium production, has encountered an increase in violence over the past year, with the Taliban controlling or fighting for control of a majority of its 14 districts. “The fighting is over: The security forces have killed all bombers and now the situation has turned to normal,” said Gen. Abdul Rahman Sarjang, the police chief of Helmand.
Fears that the insurgents, who have taken positions in the suburbs of the provincial capital, Lashkar Gah, might overrun the city have drawn back hundreds of American soldiers and advisers to the province to help Afghan security forces plan the city’s defense. A police official at the site of the attack said that at least three officers had been killed and five had been wounded. But a provincial health official said at least 14 wounded members of the security forces had arrived at hospitals in the provincial capital.
“The fighting brought havoc to the town — the main road has been blocked and movement is limited and fears has spread,” said Mohammad Karim Attal, head of the Helmand provincial council.