4 insurgents killed, five held in Afghanistan

Four suspected militants have been killed and five others detained during an operation by the US-led coalition forces in southern Afghanistan, a military statement said.

Four suspected militants have been killed and five others detained during an operation by the US-led coalition forces in southern Afghanistan, a military statement said on Sunday.

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The military operation was carried out on Saturday targeting the Taliban's roadside bomb network in southern province of Zabul, the statement said.

The forces were searching for a Taliban militant believed to be coordinating roadside bomb attacks along Highway One in Qalat district of the province. But a group of insurgents attacked the troops forcing them to retaliate, the statement said.

"During the operation, coalition forces were engaged by multiple militants armed with AK-47s," it said. "The forces returned fire and killed four of them."

Spiralling conflicts and Taliban-related insurgency have claimed lives of more than 5,000 people, mostly militants, so far this year in the strife-torn country.