Taliban attack on district in southern Afghanistan kills 7

Kandahar: An Afghan official says that a Taliban attack on a district headquarter in southern Uruzgan province has killed at least seven people.

Abdul Kareem Karimi, chief administrative official in Khas Uruzgan district, says that five police officers, a former district chief and a school principal were among those killed in the pre-dawn attack there on Monday.

He says that even with the limited number of policemen they have in the district, they are still in control but that they may lose it unless reinforcement arrive soon.

Taliban spokesman Qari Yousaf Ahmadi claimed responsibility for the Khas Uruzgan attack.

The insurgents have stepped up attacks on Afghan soldiers and police in recent months, after U.S. and NATO forces formally ended their combat mission in Afghanistan at the end of last year.