Afghanistan army defuses 12 Taliban bombs

Afghan army personnel recovered and defused one dozen Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) and landmines in two eastern provinces, the Defence Ministry said on Sunday.

"The engineering teams of Afghan National Army discovered and defused 12 IEDs and landmines in Kunar and Parwan provinces over the last 24 hours," Xinhua news agency cited a statement by the ministry.

According to military officials, the Taliban militants and other insurgent groups have been using IEDs to target security forces but the lethal weapons also inflict casualties on civilians.

On Saturday, Afghan police seized over 9,000 kg of a banned chemical in Nangarhar province, bordering Pakistan.

"Afghan National Border Police (ANBP) confiscated 9,310 kg of Ammonium Nitrate, a key component used to make Improvised Explosive Devices. The ANBP searched a truck and found the Ammonium Nitrate. One suspect was arrested in Torkham port," Afghan Interior Ministry said in a statement on Sunday.

The seizure of such a large volume of the banned material will significantly degrade the insurgents' capability to build IEDs, the statement added.

The Afghan government has banned the use, production, storage and sale of fertilizer Ammonium Nitrate since 2010.

--IANS

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