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                    Militants Launch Attacks in Afghanistan

   by VOA News

   Taliban militants have launched an assault from several directions on
   the strategic northern Afghanistan city of Kunduz.

   Police say government forces are fighting the insurgents in at least
   three Kunduz locations. A police spokesman said "heavy fighting is
   ongoing in Khanabad, Chardara and at Imam Saheb, the main entrances to
   the city."

   The coordinated attacks began early Monday.

   Insurgents have been involved in intense fighting in the once tranquil
   province of Kunduz since April.

   Sunday in eastern Afghanistan, authorities said hundreds of Islamic
   State militants staged a coordinated pre-dawn attack against key
   security outposts in Nangarhar province. Afghan forces have forced the
   extremists to retreat.

   Officials said it was the first major attack by Islamic State militants
   against Afghan forces, coming after months of reports that the
   extremist group is becoming more and more powerful in Afghanistan.

   Reports say 85 militants and three Afghan policemen were killed. Achin
   district governor Haji Ghalib Mujahid told VOA in Islamabad that most
   of the heavily armed militants were Pakistani nationals.

   Also Sunday, a suicide bomber blew himself up at a volleyball game in
   Paktika province, killing at least nine and wounding about 50. No one
   has claimed responsibility.

   Increased activity by Islamic State, especially in Nangarhar province
   where it has been fighting with the Taliban, has put more pressure on
   Afghan security forces to control the extremists.

   There are worries in Afghanistan that a leadership dispute among the
   Taliban could lead to more defections to Islamic State, strengthening
   its ranks in Afghanistan.

   The United States says it is concerned about Islamic State efforts to
   try to establish a stronghold in Afghanistan. "It is unpredictable as
   yet how it might evolve. It is something that we are taking seriously,"
   a senior State Department official said last week.
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References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/militants-launch-attacks-in-afghanistan/2982160.html