Afghan official: Taliban kill 8 policemen in country’s west

KABUL – An Afghan official says a Taliban attack in the country’s western Farah province has killed at least eight police officers.

Mohammad Naser Mehri, spokesman for the provincial governor in Farah, says the attack happened around midnight on Thursday in the Bakwa district, when a police convoy came under attack.

He says Taliban insurgents ambushed the convoy from different directions, killing the policemen. Mehri says the attack was repelled when reinforcement reached the scene.

Taliban spokesman, Qari Yusouf Ahmadi claimed responsibility for the attack in Farah. Ahmadi says Taliban fighters seized much weapons and ammunitions from the convoy they attacked.

The Taliban have intensified attacks on Afghan security forces in recent months by planting roadside bombs and staging suicide attacks or ambushes of security forces or civilian convoys across the country.