Pul-e-Alam (Afghanistan), June 6 (Xinhua-ANI): A total of 27 Taliban insurgents were killed in an operation carried out by the Afghan forces and NATO-led coalition troops early Wednesday morning in eastern Afghan province of Logar, a provincial government spokesman said.

"Based on intelligence, a unit of Afghan and coalition special operation force, backed by gunships, conducted an operation against a Taliban hideout in Baraki Barak district in wee hours Wednesday, killing 27 armed insurgents," spokesman Din Mohammad Darwish told Xinhua.

He said several foreign armed forces, affiliated with Taliban, were among the killed militants.

Meantime, the NATO-led coalition or International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) confirmed that several insurgents were killed in Logar province, some 60 km south of capital Kabul.

"An Afghan and coalition security force conducted an operation to detain a Taliban leader in Baraki Barak district, Logar province, today. The leader plans and participates in attacks against Afghan and coalition forces throughout the province," the ISAF said in a press release issued here.

During the operation, insurgents attacked the Afghan and coalition troops with small-arms fire and a grenade. The security force returned fire and requested a precision air strike, the ISAF release said, adding "As a result of the operation, multiple insurgents were killed and the Afghan and coalition security force seized several weapons and a quantity of explosives,"

"While conducting a follow-on assessment, the security force discovered two women who had sustained non-life-threatening injuries. The security force provided medical assistance and transported both women to an ISAF medical facility for treatment,"

However, the Taliban insurgent group, which announced the launching of a spring offensive from May 3 against Afghan and NATO forces, has not to make comments yet.

Afghan forces and some 130,000 NATO-led ISAF troops have intensified cleanup operations against Taliban and other militant groups throughout the country recently as spring and summer, known as "fighting season" draw near.

Records kept by Xinhua, based on figures released by Afghan Interior Ministry, reveals that more than 360 insurgents have been killed, 108 wounded and nearly 400 others detained since May 1 during military operations across the insurgency-hit country. (Xinhua-ANI)

source: http://www.newstrackindia.com/newsdetails/2012/06/06/121-27-insurgents-killed-in-eastern-Afghanistan-.html