KABUL - Senior officials from the Ministry of Defense on Saturday confirmed that Taliban has suffered heavy casualties in the ongoing airstrikes on hideouts of the group in Bala Murghab and Ab Kamari districts in the northwest of Afghanistan.
The conflict in Bala Murghab district entered its third day on Saturday. It was under Taliban siege for two days.
The Ministry of Defense's deputy spokesman Col. Zubair Arif said the Special Unit of the Army is fighting against the Taliban and that the militants have been pushed back from key parts of the district.
“The operations will continue until the districts are fully cleared of the enemy,” he said.
The Resolute Support said in a statement that the US airstrikes hit five Taliban positions in support of Afghan Security Forces in Bala Murghab district in Badghis province on Friday night. 
The statement added that air assets will be in position today to continue that support.
Sources confirmed that almost 36 members of the Afghan forces were killed in the two-day clashes in Bala Murghab district which started on April 4.
“The Afghan Defense and Security Forces are carrying out clearance and air operations led by the First Deputy Minister of Defense Yasin Zia in Bala Murghab and Ab Kamari districts in Badghis which have inflicted heavy losses to the enemy,” said Qais Mangal, spokesman for Ministry of Defense.
He said the operations are ongoing and will continue until the areas are cleared of militants.
This is the second time in a month that Bala Murghab comes under attack by militants. Last time, the district came under Taliban attack early in March and was under siege for more than two weeks, leaving more than two dozen security forces dead and almost 28 of them gone missing.
This comes as the conflicts have intensified in different parts of the country with the arrival of the spring season – which is deemed as a usual fighting season for insurgents fighting the Afghan government forces.
President Ashraf Ghani on April 2 approved the annual security plan which encompasses boosting security and fighting insurgents. (Tolo news)