Afghan forces kill 7 militants in northern Faryab province

(Xinhua) — Seven militants have been killed and five others injured as a clash erupted in Dawlat Abad district of Afghanistan’s northern Faryab province on Thursday, army spokesman in the northern region Mohammad Hanif Rezai said.

A group of Taliban insurgents, according to the official, attacked the security checkpoints in Quziboy area of the restive Dawlat Abad district at 06:30 a.m. local time, and the forces returned fire, forcing the insurgents to flee after leaving seven bodies behind and five more injured.

The official said that the security forces would do their best to ensure peace and security for the citizens to celebrate the Eid al-Adha festival in a peaceful environment.

The Taliban outfit announced a three-day ceasefire, which will come into effect on Friday to enable Afghans to mark Eid al-Adha — the largest annual religious festival in a peaceful atmosphere.

Afghan President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani has welcomed the step and declared to set free the remaining some 600 Taliban inmates to facilitate the direct intra-Afghan dialogue to find a negotiated solution for the country’s prolonged war.

The exchange of 5,000 Taliban detainees with 1,000 Afghan troopers is part of the U.S.-Taliban peace deal inked late February to facilitate the pullout of foreign forces from Afghanistan, paving the way for the intra-Afghan talks and ending the war in the country.