Alwaght- Taliban terrorists have reportedly killed at least 24 Policemen in Afghanistan's southern province of Helmand in two separate attacks.
12 Afghan policemen were killed in an attack on a checkpoint in Lashkargah, the capital city of Helmand province.
Reuters reported that Taliban militants attacked the checkpoint with silenced weapons and hand grenades killing 12 policemen and stealing weapons and ammunition, while Afghanistan based Tolonews reported that at least 11 police force members were shot dead when a policeman opened fire at his colleagues at the check post.
"An investigation is ongoing to find out if someone from inside has defected to the Taliban and paved the way for this crime," a provincial official said. The policemen newly moved to the city from Musa Qala district, Tolonews reported.
The attack, in the provincial capital Lashkar Gah, underlined the threat facing Afghan security forces in the opium-producing province, where they struggle to match well-equipped Taliban militants who now control several districts.
In a separate incident, another 12 policemen were killed in the Marjah district of Helmand after an hour-long gunbattle, Reuters cited Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid as saying.
Taliban fighters now control most of Helmand, including areas in Lashkar Gah. British and U.S. forces suffered their heaviest casualties of the war in the province in years of fighting following the removal of the Taliban in 2001.
