This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/22/world/middleeast/taliban-attacks-afghan-police-officers-dead.html

The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
Rash of Taliban Attacks Leaves 20 Afghan Police Officers Dead Rash of Taliban Attacks Leaves 22 Afghan Police Officers Dead
(about 5 hours later)
KABUL, Afghanistan — At least 20 policemen were reported killed on Wednesday in three Taliban attacks around Afghanistan, and in one of the assaults the insurgents laid siege to the government headquarters in a district capital, officials said. KABUL, Afghanistan — It was a particularly bloody Wednesday for Afghan police officers, as reports emerged that at least 22 had been killed in four assaults around the country by Taliban insurgents, who also pinned down 40 police officers and officials in a bunker, short on food and ammunition.
In the mountainous district of Yamgan, in northern Badakhshan Province, Taliban insurgents have been battling government forces for the past two days in the district government complex, which includes the governor’s office and police facilities. As of late Wednesday, 40 government and security officials remained stuck in an underground bunker there, according to Gul Ahmad Bedar, the deputy governor of province. The insurgents boasted that their spring offensive was well underway, and said it proved they could disrupt the upcoming runoff election for president of Afghanistan — something they failed spectacularly to do in the first round, on April 5.
In a statement emailed to journalists by Zabiullah Mujahid, a spokesman for the Taliban, said the insurgents claimed they had taken complete control of the Yamgan district capital, and killed 16 policemen. Mr. Bedar said eight policemen were confirmed killed, along with three insurgents. But he said the 40 people in the underground bunker had not been heard from for two days and were running short of food and ammunition. In the worst-hit place, in northern Badakhshan Province, some Afghan officials complained bitterly that the American military failed to rescue them, despite an official plea for help.
Mr. Bedar said that Afghan officials had requested support from the American-led multinational force in the country but that the request had been rejected. The multinational force has transferred responsibility for security to the Afghans as it prepares to withdraw by the end of 2014. Officials of the American-led military forces disputed that complaint, but the disagreement highlighted the changed nature of the war as the United States and its NATO allies prepare to leave the country at the end of this year. Their forces have largely stood down from the fight already, turning over security duties to the Afghanistan government.
However, Lt. Col. David Olson, a spokesman for the multinational force, disputed Mr. Bedar's account, saying that the force "did provide assistance to the Governor of Badakhshan in the form of close air support and ISR," using the military shorthand for Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance. The Afghan police force has always suffered particularly high casualties, but the reports Wednesday added up to one of its worst days.
Units from the Afghan special forces and police commandos were dispatched from Kabul to Yamgan. In the mountainous district of Yamgan, in northern Badakhshan Province, Taliban insurgents have been battling government forces for two days in thegovernment complex, which includes the governor’s office and police facilities. As of Wednesday night, 40 government and security officials remained stuck in an underground bunker, according to Gul Ahmad Bedar, the deputy governor of the province.
In another remote outpost, in southern Zabul Province, the corpses of eight policemen seized in a Taliban ambush two weeks ago were found by local officials, dumped on a roadside in the vicinity of Nowbahar District, according to Jan Mohammad Rasolyaar, the deputy governor of Nowbahar. He said he could not confirm reports that the policemen had been beheaded. According to a statement emailed to journalists by Zabiullah Mujahid, a spokesman for the insurgents, the Taliban seized control of the Yamgan district capital and killed 16 police officers. He called it part of their Khaybar offensive, as they have named this spring’s fighting season, honoring a battle that Muslims won against Jews in 629 A.D.
In the third assault targeting the police, four officers were killed in an attack late Tuesday on a check post in Mehtarlam, the capital of Laghman Province in eastern Afghanistan, according to Sarhadi Zawak, a spokesman for the Laghman governor’s office. Mr. Bedar put the confirmed death toll at eight officers and three insurgents, but he added that the officials believed to be in the underground bunker had been incommunicado for two days and were exhausting their food and ammunition.
In another assault, targeting civilians, a suicide bomber struck in a rural district in eastern Nangarhar Province, killing two people and wounding nine, Afghan officials said. Mr. Bedar said that Afghan officials had requested support from the American-led military coalition, known as the International Security Assistance Force or ISAF, but the request had been turned down.
It was not immediately clear if the rash of attacks was related to the opening of the campaign for the runoff election for president of Afghanistan, which begins on Thursday. Officials have expressed concern that greater violence may happen during the runoff, due to culminate in voting on June 14, than in the first round, which was held April 5, when the weather in mountainous Afghanistan was still too cold for much fighting. However, Lt. Col. David Olson, a spokesman for the force contradicted Mr. Bedar, saying the force “did provide assistance to the governor of Badakhshan in the form of close air support and I.S.R.,” using the military shorthand for Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance.
“ISAF has not provided us with any help,” Mr. Bedar responded. “ISAF has not bombarded the insurgents, they have not shared any intelligence with our forces. We do not even know how many insurgents are there.”
Mr. Mujahid, reached by telephone at an undisclosed location, said between 150 and 200 Taliban insurgents attacked the Yamgan district center and had taken complete control of it, although he said they had not yet decided if they would try to retain control.
“It depends on the strategic importance of the district,” he said. The district’s population totals only 20,000.
In another remote outpost, in southern Zabul Province, eight police officers seized in a Taliban ambush two weeks ago were found killed and dumped on a roadside in the vicinity of Nowbahar District, according to Jan Mohammad Rasolyaar, the Zabul deputy governor.
The Taliban spokesman for southern Afghanistan, Qari Yousuf Ahmadi, reached by telephone, confirmed that the Taliban had dumped the corpses by the roadside, but said they had been killed in a botched rescue mission by Afghan forces. He also denied reports that the insurgents had beheaded the victims.
In the third incident involving police officers to come to light Wednesday, four were killed in an attack late Tuesday night on a checkpost in Mehtarlam, the capital of Laghman Province in eastern Afghanistan, according to Sarhadi Zawak, a spokesman for the Laghman governor.
In the fourth incident, a suicide bomber struck in rural Hesarak district in eastern Nangarhar Province Wednesday, killing two Afghan police officers and wounding nine people, including the district governor, local officials said.
Mr. Mujahid boasted that the insurgents’ spring offensive was gaining momentum. “This is just the start of the Khaybar operation,” he said. “We will attack more military installations in the coming day and weeks. The fighting will intensify as the weather gets warmer. We definitely want to disrupt the so-called election.”