Afghan and NATO forces on Monday killed 13 Taliban militants in a battle in southern Afghanistan while Afghan security forces retook the troubled Ghorak district that was captured by Taliban militants almost a week ago. Taliban fighters attacked a police post in Zehri district of Kandahar province early on Sunday, killing three policemen and leaving two others wounded, Sayed Aqa Saqib told AFP. A gunfight erupted and 13 Taliban were killed. The Taliban have overrun several under-policed district centres in the south and west but have usually been pushed out after a few days.
Meanwhile, the Taliban are expected to free 18 mine-clearing experts they seized over the weekend, an official for the Mine-Detection Dog Centre said. Taliban fighters have executed a number of Afghans and several foreigners they have accused of spying or working for the US-led foreign forces since their overthrow in 2001.