Taliban destroy highway bridge, isolating 3 Afghan provinces

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — An Afghan official says the Taliban have destroyed a highway bridge southwest of Kabul during a wide-ranging assault on security forces, cutting off road traffic between the capital and three provinces.

Abdul Rahman Mangel, the provincial governor's spokesman, says Afghan forces repelled the attack, which began late Saturday and appeared to be aimed at seizing a district headquarters in the Maidan Wardak province. He says gunbattles are still underway and there are casualties on both sides, without elaborating. The Taliban claim to have overrun the Sayed Abad district headquarters, but local officials denied the claim.

The bridge destroyed in the assault cuts off the main highway from Kabul to the Ghazni, Zabul and Kandahar provinces. The battle also cut off electricity to four provinces: Maidan Wardak, Logar, Ghazni and Paktia.