At least 100 security personnel, 30 civilians killed in fight for Afghan city

KABUL: At least 100 security forces have been killed in the embattled Afghan city of Ghazni. Defence minister Tariq Shah Bahrami during a press conference in Kabul said: "About 100 security forces have lost their lives and between 20 and 30 civilians have been killed."

Government troops in Ghazni province have been battling Taliban terrorists backed by US airstrikes. Ghazni, the capital of Ghazni province 125 km south of Kabul, is in its fourth day under siege after hundreds of Taliban fighters launched an attack on the city in the early hours of Friday.

Meanwhile, President Ashraf Ghani has ordered more troops to be sent to Ghazni.

The clashes erupted after hundreds of Taliban insurgents stormed important government entities including the National Directorate for Security (Afghanistan`s Inteligence Agency) and the provincial governor`s office.

Ghazni lies on the Kabul-Kandahar highway, an important artery connecting the capital to the country`s southern provinces and some of its western ones.

The Ghazni fighting adds to an increasingly fevered political atmosphere ahead of parliamentary elections in October, which have faced widespread concerns over potential security threats from both the Taliban and other armed groups.

As troops were battling Taliban fighters in Ghazni, a suicide bomber in Kabul detonated explosives near the office of the independent election commission, where dozens of protesters had gathered, killing at least one police officer and wounding another, said a security official who sought anonymity.

The protesters had turned out in support of a parliamentary candidate disqualified by electoral officials over suspected links with illegal armed groups, as barred lawmakers encourage protests to disrupt the panel`s activities.

(With agency inputs)