Afghan official: Taliban kill 5 workers clearing land mines

KABUL — An Afghan official says the Taliban killed at least five members of a demining team in southern Kandahar province.

Zia Durrani, spokesman for the provincial police chief, says a sixth worker is missing and his fate is unknown following the attack on Monday morning in the district of Maiwand.

Durrani says the de-miners were working for the TAPI national project, clearing a segment for a planned gas pipeline from central Asia that’s headed to Pakistan and India through Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, Karim Yuresh, police spokesman in northern Faryab province, says the Taliban attacked a district headquarters on Sunday night, burning down about 50 shops in Khuaja Sabz Posh district. He says reinforcements repelled the attackers. Six insurgents were killed and 10 were wounded.