23 militants die in Afghanistan…
KABUL: The US military, along with the Afghan security forces, backed by warplanes killed nearly two dozens militants in a clash in southern Afghanistan at the weekend, the US side said on Monday.
The troops called in air support after the militants attacked their patrol in Uruzgan province on Sunday, US military spokeswoman Captain Elizabeth Mathias told AFP. “Twenty-three militants were killed,” she said, adding that three coalition soldiers were wounded in the gunfight. “This was not a planned operation — they were engaged out on a patrol,” she added.
Afghan Interior Minister Mohammad Anif Atmar said on Sunday that the number of militant attacks had increased by about 40 per cent in the past week, as compared with the week before.
The week of violence left 48 civilians, 30 policemen and 176 rebels dead, he told reporters. US General Stanley McChrystal took command of US-and Nato-led troops in Afghanistan on Monday, tasked with carrying out a new US strategy to bring new impetus to the battle against the militants.
Meanwhile an Estonian soldier was killed Monday in Afghanistan bringing to four the death toll among Estonian troops serving in the Nato-led force there since 2003, the Estonian Defence Ministry said Monday.
Source: thenews.com.pk
