By KUNA,
Kabul : The NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) on Thursday claimed it had killed a Taliban leader in an air strike in southern Afghanistan.
A statement from ISAF headquarters here said that the operation was conducted in Nawzad district of the restive Helmand.
The slain Taliban commander had been identified as Mullah Bismullah Akhund. He was responsible for supplying weapons and Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) to the militants, said the statement. Taliban did not issue any comment.
Separately, the Afghan Defense Ministry said at least 10 Taliban were killed in an air strike in Shin Dand district of the western province of Herat.
Spokesman for the minister General Zahir Azimi said that the militants were killed in an air strike. Earlier, the NATO troops admitted they had killed eight civilians in an air strike in the neighboring province of Farah.
A local police officer, meanwhile, claimed that 40 to 50 people were killed in NATO forces’ air strike in Shin Dand district of Herat.
Shin Dand Police Chief Haji Abdulshakoor said it was not clear those killed were Taliban militants or civilians. However, he confirmed some civilians sustained injuries in the overnight bombing.