Local security forces backed by NATO troops killed more than three dozen Taliban in a series of military operations across Afghanistan, Afghan authorities said on Wednesday. The raids were announced on the eve of President Hamid Karzai's inauguration for a second term as president. Karzai is under pressure from the West to curb corruption and restore legitimacy after a presidential election marred by fraud as the US considers sending thousands more troops to quell a Taliban-led insurgency. Twenty-three Taliban-linked militants were killed in an operation by Afghan and Western troops in the Paktika province late on Tuesday, Hamidullah Zhwak, a provincial spokesman, said in a statement.