Afghan Taliban storm security posts in western province, killing 21

At least 21 Afghan security forces have been killed as Taliban militants stormed security checkpoints in the western province of Badghis, in one of the deadliest attacks to hit the area in months.

Local officials said two security posts in different parts of the province, which borders Turkmenistan, had been stormed by the militants overnight.

Some 14 Afghan policemen and seven pro-government forces lost their lives, while nine others were injured in the raids, according to Abdul Aziz Bek, head of the provincial council.

Qari Yousuf Ahmadi, a Taliban spokesman, put the number of fatalities at 34, claiming that the militants had seized many weapons and ammunition from government forces during the raids.

Jamshid Shahabi, a spokesman for the Badghis provincial governor, also aid over 15 Taliban militants had been killed and 10 others wounded in the ensuing clashes.

In a separate incident on Monday, at least five civilians were killed and eight wounded in a bomb blast in the eastern province of Paktika.

The Taliban left the bomb in a village square, said provincial official Mohammad Rasoul Adel.

The Taliban militants have in recent months stepped up attacks on security forces across Afghanistan, killing a large number of police forces as well as civilians.

Taliban to US: Leave Afghanistan or face Soviet fate

The Taliban have warned the US that it would face the same fate as the Soviet Union in the 1980s if it did not leave Afghanistan.

This comes as representatives from the militant group, the US, and regional countries met for a fourth time in the UAE capital Abu Dhabi last month for talks to end the 17-year war in Afghanistan. Another meeting is also scheduled for later this month.

The militant group has so far refused to hold talks with the Kabul government, which it views as illegitimate.