AYBAK, Afghanistan, Sept. 14 (Xinhua) -- About eight police personnel were killed and 18 others wounded after Taliban militants attacked security checkpoints in Afghanistan's northern province of Samangan Thursday night, a local official said Friday.
"The clashes erupted when scores of militants stormed Afghan Local Police (ALP) checkpoints with guns and rocket propelled grenades (RPGs), in Daykundi village of Dara-i-Suf district at midnight, triggering heavy clashes lasting for hours," Makhdom Sahidzada, deputy district chief, told Xinhua.
The government established the ALP, or community police, in 2010 to protect villages and districts around the country where army and police have limited presence.
The injured were shifted to a hospital in the district, located in southwestern part of provincial capital.
Without providing details, the official noted that several militants were also killed and injured after the clashes.
The district has been the scene of heavy clashes between Taliban and security forces recently and the fighting and insecurity in Dara-i-Suf has displaced scores of villagers.
Fighting has escalated in Afghanistan as the Taliban insurgency spreads from its traditional strongholds in the south and east to the once peaceful region in the north, where Taliban have been recruiting from among the youth.
