Thirty-three rebels killed in Afghanistan

KANDAHAR: Afghan authorities on Saturday said 33 militants were killed in an air strike and other operations in the insurgency-hit southern province of Helmand. Twenty-six Taliban were killed in an air strike conducted by foreign forces near the town of Lashkar Gah late Friday, said Daud Ahmadi, a spokesman for the local administration there. "A group of Taliban were targeted from the air by coalition forces. Twenty-six enemy fighters were killed in that strike," Ahmadi told a foreign news agency. He said the rebels left their dead comrades behind as they fled the scene. The US-led coalition denied involvement in the incident while NATO's International Security Assistance Force could not immediately provide information. General Sher Mohammad Zazai, the commander of the Afghan army for southern Afghanistan, said seven other rebels were killed elsewhere in Helmand the same day. The general said the rebels were killed during operations recently launched across southern Afghanistan to push back the militants from their strongholds ahead of presidential polls in August. The Taliban are trying to topple the US-backed administration of President Hamid Karzai and oust the foreign forces from Afghanistan. Taliban rebels have also increased their activities, staging guerrilla-style attacks which mainly include roadside bombs and hit-and-ran ambushes.