Radio Free Afghanistan
April 20, 2021
At least 12 members of the Afghan security forces were killed in overnight attacks, officials said on April 20.
In the northern province of Badakhshan, at least eight police officers were killed and two wounded after militants attacked a checkpoint in Zebak district, according to member of provincial government Zakir Arian.
A police official confirmed the attack and the fact that there were casualties, but gave no numbers.
Militants also suffered casualties in the attack, sources told Tolo News.
In the western province of Herat, officials said at least two members of the security forces were killed and 15 were wounded in a suicide car-bomb attack on a police headquarters in the Ghoryan district.
A dozen civilians, including children, were among the wounded, the provincial government said in a statement. Four residential houses were destroyed and many others were damaged partially, the statement said.
In Kabul, an army officer and his driver were shot dead by unidentified shooters, police said.
The Taliban claimed responsibility for the car bombing and the checkpoint attack. Government officials also blamed the militant group.
U.S. President Joe Biden last week announced the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan by September 11, four months later than the May 1 deadline agreed by the previous U.S. administration with the Taliban.
In response, the Taliban announced they will not attend a high-level peace conference in Turkey scheduled for April 24.
Pakistan, Qatar, and Turkey are all exerting pressure on the Taliban to attend, according to media reports.
On April 19, Pakistan urged the Taliban to remain engaged in the Afghan peace process.
“They make their own decisions but we will do whatever we can to convince them that it is in their national interest to remain engaged,” Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said of the Taliban in an interview with Reuters in Abu Dhabi.
Experts have voiced concern that a devastating civil war could break out unless the government and the Taliban reach a political agreement before the complete withdrawal of international forces.
With reporting by dpa, Reuters, and TOLO News
Copyright (c) 2021. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave NW, Ste 400, Washington DC 20036
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