16 Taliban killed in drone attacks in Afghanistan

KABUL - At least 16 Taliban militants were killed in US-led airstrikes carried out by pilotless aircraft in southern Afghanistan, the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said Tuesday.

NATO pinpointed a group of insurgents who were moving mortar rounds and ammunition Monday near a safe house in Helmand province, the ISAF said in a statement.

“An unmanned aerial vehicle launched one Hellfire missile, killing 13 insurgents,” it said, adding that there were no reports of civilian casualties in the Naw Zad district, where the incident took place.

Three other insurgents were killed Monday in another drone attack in the Nad Ali district of the same province, the statement said.

Also Monday, an unknown number of “known insurgents” were killed by Afghan and international forces in the western province of Herat, it said.

The targeted militants were linked to roadside bombings in the region, it said without giving any details on the operation.

Meanwhile, the ISAF revised down its toll of soldiers killed in separate incidents Monday from six to five.

The five included three US troops who died in a fight with insurgents in the south and one French soldier killed by insurgents in the east.

The fifth soldier, whose nationality was not revealed by the ISAF, was killed by a roadside bomb in southern Afghanistan.

Fourteen NATO soldiers, including at least 10 US troops, have been killed in the Afghan conflict so far in January.

A total of 520 international troops, including 317 US soldiers, were killed in Afghanistan last year, the deadliest period for US and NATO forces since the ouster of the Taliban regime in late 2001.

More than 110,000 foreign troops are currently stationed in Afghanistan. Up to 37,000 additional US and NATO troops were expected to arrive in summer as part of a military escalation against the Taliban.