20 Taliban militants killed in operations in Afghanistan: Government

Kabul, Apr 25 (Xinhua-ANI): A total of 20 Taliban militants have been killed and 11 others detained during joint military operations within the past 24 hours across the country, the Afghan Interior Ministry said Wednesday morning.

"Afghan National Police (ANP), army, NDS or intelligence agency and Coalition Forces launched 15 joint cleanup operations in Kabul, Kapisa, Helmand, Logar, Kandahar, Ghazni and Paktia provinces over the past 24 hours, killing 20 armed Taliban insurgents and detaining 11 other suspects," the ministry said in a statement.

They also found and seized weapons besides defusing 11 anti- vehicle mines, the statement said without saying if there were any casualties on the side of security forces.

Four militants were also injured during the operations, it said.he Taliban militant group, who stepped up their attacks on Afghan and NATO-led troops over the past weeks, has yet to make comments.

In another development, a tribal elder was killed Tuesday night when a group of armed men break into his house in southern Helmand province, a provincial government spokesman said Wednesday.

"A tribal elder named Hajji Mohammad Shah along with his eight- year-old son was shot and killed by armed men in his residence while having dinner in Kochinai Darwashan area of Garmser district Tuesday night," spokesman Daud Ahmadi told Xinhua.

Blaming Taliban for the shooting attack, Ahmadi said the attackers fled the area and the police launched an investigation into the case.

Afghan and NATO military officials said recently that impressive Taliban-led attacks would occur in the coming weeks and months as spring and summer, known as "fighting season", are drawing near. (Xinhua-ANI)