PESHAWAR—The Afghan Taliban Tuesday occupied 13 security check posts very close to the Pakistan border in Bajaur tribal region that were vacated by NATO forces, security officials said.
Taliban fighters occupied the check posts early Tuesday morning after they were vacated by NATO forces. The NATO troops had recently launched Operation Lionheart against militants in the area. The militants have also established their armed patrols in the region, the security officials said.
Pakistan had registered a formal protest against the setting up of the security check posts so close to the border.
Meanwhile, Taliban insurgents fired a rocket into a US helicopter on Tuesday, killing an Afghan interpreter and wounding eight soldiers in eastern Afghanistan, a key flashpoint in the country's war.
The US-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) took nearly a full day to confirm that an explosion on the aircraft was caused by an insurgent attack, which the Taliban militia had been quick to claim. An AFP correspondent in Kunar province said he saw three helicopters flying over the Ghash area of Marawar district and then heard the sound of rocket fire, after which two helicopters flew off and a gun battle broke out.
"Eight people were wounded and one killed after a rocket-propelled-grenade was fired at an International Security Assistance Force helicopter in Kunar province today," the military said. There were 26 people on board the helicopter, which ISAF identified as a US CH-47 Chinook.
The helicopter had just landed at a military outpost and was off-loading through the rear ramp when the RPG was fired into the cargo bay. "The explosion resulted in one Afghan interpreter killed, seven ISAF service members and one Afghan border police member wounded," the military said.
Eastern Afghanistan is one of the most volatile parts of the country, where Taliban and other Islamist insurgents have carved out strongholds.