Afghanistan Follow-Up: Sunday's 18-Hour Battle in Kabul (Al Jazeera English)
Monday, April 16, 2012 at 8:00Gun battles between Afghan security forces and Taliban fighters in the capital, Kabul, have ended after almost 18 hours of fierce fighting, according to government and police officials.
"The latest information we have about the Afghan parliament area is that the attack is over now and the only insurgent who was resisting has been killed," Hashmatullah Stanikzai, the Kabul police chief's spokesman, said on Monday.
There are conflicting reports regarding the number of casualties in the co-ordinated attacks that targeted mainly western installations in Kabul, which the Taliban described as the launch of a "spring offensive".
Defence ministry said 32 gunmen and three Afghan soldiers were killed in the operation against the multiple assaults, Reuters news agency reported.
However, AFP news agency said 36 fighters and eight members of security forces were killed and 44 others were wounded in the gun battle.