Kabul, May 29: Militants ambushed an Afghan police convoy with a roadside bomb and gunfire in eastern Afghanistan, killing five officers before fleeing NATO aerial bombardment, an official said today.
Two militants were killed and up to six wounded in the battle yesterday in Paktia province, said Ghulam Dastagir, the deputy provincial police chief.
He said the convoy was headed toward the Dandi Pathan district when one vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb blast, killing five officers and wounding the district police chief.
Militants opened fire after the blast, triggering a gunbattle that lasted several hours before NATO aircraft were called in.
Farther north, officials in Nuristan province were still trying to confirm reports that a senior Pakistani Taliban leader was killed in several days of fighting between security forces and militants who have been trying to seize control of the Barg-e-Matal district on the Pakistan border.
–PTI