NATO forces kill 170 Taliban in Afghanistans Helmand province

US-led coalition troops backed by warplanes have killed about 170 Taliban militants in two major battles in southern Afghanistan. A US-led coalition soldier has also died in the operation.

Kabul, Sep 27 : US-led coalition troops backed by warplanes have killed about 170 Taliban militants in two major battles in southern Afghanistan. A US-led coalition soldier has also died in the operation.

Fighting with the insurgents erupted on Tuesday in Helmand, a Taliban stronghold, and continued till Wednesday, a statement from the US-led coalition said.

"The initial estimate by a ground forces commander assessed that more than 104 insurgents were killed thus far in the engagement," it said. The figures could not be verified independently.

A soldier with the 15,000-strong US-dominated coalition was also killed and four were wounded. The nationalities of the foreign soldiers were not announced.

The fighting erupted during an Afghan and coalition patrol aimed at clearing an "extensive trench system" near the Taliban-controlled district centre of Musa Qala in Helmand, Afghanistan's main opium-growing province.

More than 65 rebels were killed late on Tuesday in a similar battle in the neighbouring province of Uruzgan, another hotbed for the Taliban insurgents, The Nation reported.

"Precision-guided munitions were employed on positively identified Taliban positions, killing more than 65 insurgents," the ISAF statement said.

There have been several major clashes in southern Afghanistan in the past few weeks during which scores of rebels have been killed.

The latest death of a coalition soldier took to 173 the number of international troops to have died in Afghanistan this year, most in combat operations. About 4,000 rebels have also been killed along with hundreds of civilians.

The Musa Qala district centre has become one of the Taliban's most significant strongholds since the rebels overran the small town in February.

"The end is near for the Taliban that believe Musa Qala is safe from Islamic Republic of Afghanistan forces," coalition spokesman Major Chris Belcher said.

"This combined operation is just one more step to securing the Musa Qala area of the Helmand province," he said.

ANI