Afghan official: Taliban overruns checkpoints, kills 29 border police near Kandahar
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}An Afghan provincial official says that a total of 29 border police officers have been killed after the Taliban overran two check points in southern Helmand province.
Bashir Ahmad Shakir, a provincial council member in Helmand province, said on Wednesday that the police officers were killed after a three-day battle, when reinforcements failed to arrive.
Shakir says the Taliban initially killed 21 officers and took eight hostage, but later killed the eight prisoners.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Shakir says the Nawzad district of Helmand province, where the battles took place, is a particularly volatile area that is regularly targeted by insurgents.