At least five people have been killed and four others injured during clashes between police and gunmen who stormed a police station in Afghanistan's western province of Herat.
The spokesman for the provincial governor, Jailani Farhad, said two gunmen attacked the building on Saturday and killed three policemen, one civilian and a child.
He added that four policemen were also wounded before the attackers were killed.
Members of the Afghan National Security Forces seized a vehicle packed with explosives from the site of the raid.
Interior Ministry's spokesman Najib Danish said that police special forces were deployed to the area.
No group has claimed responsibility for the assault yet but the Taliban have carried out similar attacks in the past few years.
On Thursday, Taliban militants killed at least 32 members of security forces and pro-government militias during a series of coordinated attacks on checkpoints in four Afghan provinces.
PressTV-Dozens killed as Taliban attack troops in four provinces
Taliban militants have killed at least 32 members of security forces and pro-government militias during a series of attacks on checkpoints in four Afghan provinces.
Officials said the attacks took place in the northern provinces of Kunduz, Baghlan, and Takhar, and in the western province of Badghis.
The attacks happened a few days after at least 21 Afghan security forces were killed as Taliban militants stormed security checkpoints in Badghis, in one of the deadliest attacks to hit the area in months.
PressTV-Afghan Taliban attack govt. security posts, kill 21
Taliban militants storm security posts in Badghis Province, killing nearly two dozen Afghan forces.
Local officials said two security posts in different parts of the province, which borders Turkmenistan, had been stormed by the militants.
The attacks took place despite stepped up efforts by the Kabul government to convince the Taliban to end more than 17 years of militancy amid Washington’s failures on the battleground.
Representatives from the Taliban, the US, and regional countries met for the fourth time in December in the Emirati capital Abu Dhabi for talks to end the war in Afghanistan, but the militant group’s representatives refused to talk to the Afghan negotiating team.
PressTV-UAE reports 'positive' US-Taliban talks
The UAE reports tangible results from the latest round of talks between the US and Afghanistan’s Taliban militant group.
The US State Department's special envoy, Zalmay Khalilzad, said he held "productive" meetings in Abu Dhabi with Afghan and international partners "to promote intra-Afghan dialogue towards ending the conflict."
Read more:
- Afghanistan sends team to join US-Taliban talks in Abu Dhabi
- Taliban rejects Afghan government’s offer of peace talks
- Afghan forces eliminating Taliban field commanders seen obstacle to peace
- Iran supports peace process, democracy in Afghanistan: Deputy FM
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