Taliban Kills Dozens of Soldiers Despite Government Ceasefire

TEHRAN (Defapress)-The attack early on Wednesday comes days after the Taliban announced that it would resume fighting despite President Ashraf Ghani extending the Eid ceasefire by 10 days.

Abdul Aziz Bek, head of the Badghis provincial council, said one military base was targeted, in the district of Balamerghab.

"Large numbers of Taliban came from several directions," Bek stated, adding that "after hours of heavy fighting 30 Afghan security forces were killed and the Taliban captured the base".

Fifteen Taliban were killed in other areas of the province overnight, he said, adding that the fighters prepared their attacks and did reconnaissance of the area during their ceasefire.

The Taliban's three-day ceasefire ended on Sunday.

In the statement on Sunday, the Taliban repeated their preconditions for peace talks, including that they would only negotiate directly with the US and that foreign forces should leave Afghanistan.

Taliban has waged a bloody armed rebellion against Western-backed Afghan government since it was deposed by the US-led NATO forces in 2001.

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