LASHKARGAH (PAN): Interior Minister Mujtaba Patang on Tuesday alleged insurgent attacks on Afghan security forces in the Sangin district of southern Helmand province were planned in Pakistan.
Patang, who arrived in Sangin, met with Afghan forces commanders and discussed with them the security situation.
He praised security forces for their timely and effective response to insurgent attacks still continuing.
Patang said the armed opposition had been defeated in the Sangin battle, saying so far 140 Taliban fighters had been killed and scores of others wounded.
He said the Afghan forces had proved their ability in the Sangin clashes that they could deal with every kind of aggression.
Governor Toryalai Weesa, who accompanied Patang, told reporters that Sangin residents were cooperating with Afghan forces in identifying militant hideouts and places mined by the insurgents. He called the Sangin battle a huge one, saying civilians had suffered no casualties so far.
Deputy Helmand council head Fazl Bari Fayaz said the security situation in Sangin had a direct impact on the situation in Kandahar, Uruzgan and Daikundi provinces.
Sangin resident Lal Mohammad said there were many new faces fighting alongside the Afghan Taliban, who even did not understand their language.
