Afghan army kills 31 militants, 3 soldiers killed in attacks

The Afghan Defense Ministry on Monday said that the army killed 31 militants during operations in the past 24 hours.
"Afghan National Army (ANA) conducted cleanup operations in Khost, Kandahar, Helmand and Parwan provinces over the last 24 hours, killing 31 militants, wounding 15 and arresting one suspected militant," the ministry said in a statement.
Three ANA soldiers were killed in bomb attacks elsewhere in the country over the same period, according to the statement.
In addition, 16 Taliban and eight policemen have been killed during an ongoing clash in the country's northern province of Faryab, provincial governor Mohammadullah Batash told Xinhua earlier on the day.
The ongoing clash began on Saturday after the militants launched massive attacks on security checkpoints in Qaysar district of the province, 425 km northwest of Afghan capital of Kabul, the official noted.
A surge in attacks has been witnessed in the country since the Taliban launched a yearly rebel offensive against Afghan security forces and the NATO-led troops stationed in the country in mid-May.
The war-torn country is due to take over the responsibility for its own security from foreign troops by the end of the year.
Nearly 50,000 NATO-led coalition troops, down from the peak of 130, 000 in 2010, are stationed in Afghanistan, and the United States plans to trim its forces to less than 10,000 next year.