At least two dozen Afghan security forces were killed on Friday in an insider attack on their base in southern Afghanistan, officials said, as fighting raged in the war-weary country while efforts to start talks with the Taliban stalled.
The pre-dawn attack in Zabul province comes as Afghanistan is grappling with several crises including an increase in Taliban violence that has thrown a supposed peace process into turmoil, mounting coronavirus ( COVID-19 )cases, and a political feud that has seen two men claim the presidency.
The attack in Zabul saw several “infiltrators” open fire on their comrades as they slept, according to provincial Governor Rahmatullah Yarmal, in one of the deadliest attacks since the U.S. signed a withdrawal deal with the Taliban last month.
The pre-dawn raid targeted a joint police and army headquarters near Qalat, the provincial capital. “In the attack, 14 Afghan Army forces and 10 policemen were killed,” Zabul provincial council chief Ata Jan Haq Bayan said.
Connection with Taliban
He added that four other Afghan service members were missing. “The attackers had connections with the Taliban insurgents,” Mr. Bayan said. They fled in two military Humvee vehicles, along with a pickup truck, weapons and ammunition. Mr. Yarmal confirmed the toll.
Hours after the incident the Defence Ministry vowed to retaliate, while also giving a lower death toll for the attack, saying just 17 were killed. The Afghan security forces “will not leave this attack unanswered and will avenge the blood of the martyrs” the Ministry added in a statement. The U.S. embassy later condemned the attack on Twitter, saying “the time for peace is now”.
Zabul province, bordering Pakistan, has long been an insurgent stronghold and was the holdout for former Taliban supreme leader Mullah Omar, who died in 2013.
The Zabul attack comes just a day after Afghan Defence Minister Asadullah Khalid called on the Taliban to commit to a ceasefire as a way of tackling COVID-19 , which observers fear is spreading unchecked through the impoverished country.
