At least 26 militants were killed in series of airstrikes by the Afghan air forces in Helmand province on Friday, Arian news reported. Among the killed, 22 were from the Taliban while four were from al-Qaeda. 

Afghan Air Force released a statement saying the strikes were conducted on Friday morning in Momin Khan area of Mawa district in Helmand Province. Around 15 insurgents, belonging to the Taliban and al Qaeda, killed in the strike.

The statement said, three of them were IED specialists from the Taliban. They were hit while planting IEDs on roads. 

Another 11 militants were killed when they were planning offensive attacks against the Afghan forces, the statement says. While it didn’t provide the exact location of the attack.

The Taliban hasn’t commented on the strikes so far. In the past some months, the country saw a dramatic rise in IED related casualty. Kabul reported IED-related explosions almost on daily basis. Since the US-Taliban deal, signed on 29 February, the insurgent avoided taking responsibility for these attacks.