At least 22 Afghan police killed in Taliban ambush: official

HERAT, Afghanistan –At least 22 police were killed in a Taliban ambush in western Afghanistan, a health official said Monday, in another blow to Afghan forces already suffering record casualties. 

The attack on the police convoy in Farah province on Sunday also wounded at least two officers, said Shir Ahmad Weda, director of the public hospital in the provincial capital. 

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack in a WhatsApp message, saying 25 police were killed and four wounded. 
"Four vehicles were destroyed and a large quantity of weapons were seized," Qari Yousuf Ahmadi, a spokesman for the militants, added. The Taliban have stepped up attacks on Afghan security forces in recent months, inflicting record casualties even as efforts to engage the militants in peace talks intensify. 
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