30 Taliban Killed

Hadn't had one of these posts in a while. Reuters

HERAT, Afghanistan (Reuters) - U.S.-led coalition and Afghan forces backed by airpower have killed or wounded more than 30 Taliban insurgents in fighting in the west of Afghanistan, a senior police official said on Tuesday.

There has been a sharp rise in violence in Afghanistan in the past two months as the summer fighting season gets into full swing. Security analysts predict July could be the worst month of violence since the Taliban relaunched their insurgency in 2005.

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"So far more than 30 Taliban insurgents have been killed or wounded in the operation," Yawar told Reuters. "The toll might be more than 30 because the operation is ongoing."

A U.S.-led convoy was engaged with small arms fire and rocket-propelled grenades on Tuesday morning in Bala Boluk, a U.S. military spokesman said.

Air strikes were called in but no munitions were dropped. The U.S. military could not confirm if there were any Taliban dead, the U.S. spokesman said. International forces do not usually give casualty figures for insurgents.