By Shadi Khan Saif
KABUL, Afghanistan (AA) – A district governor and 13 officials, including police officers, were killed in a Taliban attack in Afghanistan's central Ghazni province, officials confirmed on Thursday.
Ramzan Ali, security director at the provincial police headquarters in Ghazni, told Anadolu Agency that a group of Taliban militants stormed the district administration compound in the Khwaja Umari district Wednesday night, killing Governor Ali Shams Dost and 13 others.
The Taliban have claimed responsibility for the attack with the group’s spokesman Zabihullah Mujahed tweeting that a number of checkposts had been overrun and over 20 security personnel killed.
Confirming the attack, the administration in the provincial capital discarded the Taliban’s claims of overrunning the Khwaja Umari district.
The Afghan National Police (ANP) in Ghazni said in a statement that over 40 Taliban militants had been killed in this raid.
The Taliban stormed the district headquarters Thursday at around 2.00 a.m. (2130GMT Wednesday), and used long-range rocket launchers to target the highly guarded compound, local Azadi Radio reported.
This comes as the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) on Thursday renewed its call on all parties in the conflict to increase efforts to protect civilians.
