At least 22 foreign Taliban militants were killed in an operation by Afghan forces in Musa Qala district of southern Helmand province last night, officials said Monday.
Five Pakistanis and one Bangladeshi were among those killed, the country’s Defense Ministry said in a statement.
Fourteen other militants were arrested in the operation, it said adding it destroyed also a large cache of ammunition.
The provincial governor’s office in a statement confirmed death of 14 Taliban militants in the operation which involved airstrikes.
According to the statement, the deaths included six foreign militants and three commanders.
The commanders were identified as Ishan, Haqbin and Farhad, who had plotted high-profile attacks including that on army’s 215 Maiwand Corps, the statement said.
Militants explosives were also destroyed in the raid, according to the statement.
Provincial council member, Abdul Majid Akhundzada, claimed that a wedding ceremony was hitin the raid as a result of which 40 people including women and children were killed.
Nine others were wounded, he said.
Defense Ministry said that it would investigate claims of civilian casaulties.
Meanwhile, a security source said that two al-Qaeda members were among those killed in the raid.
