43 including 23 Afghan security forces killed in Taliban attack

International Desk: At least 43 people including 23 Afghan soldiers were killed in an attack on a military base in Helmand province in southern Afghanistan, officials said.

The pre-dawn assault on Shorab military base - one of the largest military installations in the country - lasted for several hours and was claimed by the Taliban.

It was the Taliban's third attempt to overrun the base in the past 48 hours, according to officials.

Omar Zwak, a spokesman for the provincial governor, also confirmed the toll.

The US advise and assist mission, which works alongside Afghan troops, also operates from the base but in a separate area of the complex. US and international forces present at the base were safe as the Taliban could not breach the walls of their compound, according to security officials.

Clashes between the Taliban and government troops backed by foreign forces have not subsided even as US and Taliban officials are holding talks in Qatar to seek a negotiated solution to end Afghanistan's long war.

Afghan forces are taking heavy casualties on the battlefield in Afghanistan. President Asraf Ghani said in January that 45,000 members of the country's security forces have been killed since he became leader in September 2014.

Source: Agencies

risingbd/March 2, 2019/Mukul