August 16, 2008	Saturday	Sha'aban 13, 1429

KABUL, Aug 15: Afghan security forces withdrew on Friday morning from an eastern district after days of fighting with Taliban, allowing the militants to move in and capture the area, officials said.

A spokesman for the Taliban, Zabihullah Mujahed, claimed the government troops had withdrawn from Nawa district in Ghazni province under pressure after more than two weeks of attacks.

Interior ministry spokesman Zemarai Bashary confirmed police had pulled out of the remote district near the Pakistan border but did not give details.

The deputy provincial governor, Mohammed Kazim Allah Yar, said it was not clear why the security forces had pulled back. “Now the district is not under our control,” he said, adding there were plans to redeploy to the area.

Mujahed said the security forces had left on Friday morning after days of heavy fighting, and militants had torched a district administration building and blown up other structures. “The district is under control of the mujahideen,” he said.

Police on Thursday pulled back from posts in a district of Helmand province after two weeks of clashes with militants. The Taliban also claimed to have taken over that district, called Nad Ali.—AFP