MAZAR-I-SHARIF, Afghanistan, May 22 (Xinhua) -- Three militants have been killed and 20 others injured after clashes erupted during a military operation in Afghanistan's northern province of Balkh, authorities said Wednesday.
"The operation was launched by army personnel in Balkh district, Balkh province on Tuesday. Five villages were cleared of militants," army Corps 209 Shaeen said in a statement.
The security forces also seized seven militants' motorcycles along with weapons and ammunition, the statement added.
There were no casualties on the security forces and civilian sides during the raids.
The Afghan National Defense and Security Forces remain in control of most of Afghanistan's population centers and all of 34 provincial capitals, but Taliban insurgents control large portions of rural areas, staging coordinated large-scale attacks against Afghan cities and districts since early April when the militant group launched a yearly rebel offensive.
