- Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the Taliban has captured Ghazni's district of Malistan
- A resurgent Taliban now hold nearly half of Afghanistan
KABUL, Afghanistan: An Afghan official says the Taliban have killed some 20 members of the security forces in fighting in eastern Ghazni province.
Lawmaker Ali Akbar Qasemi says fighting over the past 24 hours has focused on the district of Jaghuri in Ghazni.
The Afghan army chief, Gen. Mohammad Sharif Yaftali, told reporters on Monday that the fighting in Jaghuri is underway and that government forces have sustained casualties. He declined to elaborate on specifics or say how many were killed.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid claimed responsibility for the insurgent attacks and claimed in a text message to the media that the Taliban captured Ghazni’s district of Malistan.
Meanwhile, in Kabul, hundreds of Shiites staged a rally demanding government forces secure Ghazni.
A resurgent Taliban now hold nearly half of Afghanistan.