At least 21 personnel of Afghan special forces were killed in northern Afghanistan’s Faryab province by the Taliban, officials of the Afghan defense ministry confirmed. The special force unit was sent to retake a town fallen to the insurgents a week ago. Among the dead include Major Sohrab Azimi, the son of General Zahir Azimi, former spokesperson of the interior ministry. Sohrab was the head of the unit and had received military education in the United States and Turkey. 

General Azimi confirmed the death of his son, saying he had volunteered for the operation. 

Reports say clashes happened in Dawlat Abad district On Wednesday, a strategic town on the highway connecting  Majar-e-Sharif to Herat. The town fell to the Taliban a week ago. During the clash, at least 21 commandos have been killed and 15 went missing. 

A report in the Tolonews says fighting has been going on in at least 200 places in 80 districts of the country’s over 400 districts. Reports show that the Afghan insurgent group had captured over 33 district centers while security forces retreated from many cities. However, the Afghan government claimed to have recaptured a few of these districts. 

Almost 100 Afghan security personnel are dying daily, unconfirmed media reports say. The Afghan government had long stopped releasing the count of battle fields’ casualties. The number of daily dead on the Taliban side is said to be even higher. 

(SAM)