MOSCOW: A commander of the Taliban movement was killed in a US airstrike in the southern Afghan province of Helmand, media reported on Monday.
According to 1TV Afghanistan broadcaster, "a shadow Taliban governor in Helmand," Abdul Manan Akhund was killed on Saturday evening near the town of Nawzad along with four other Taliban militants.
Taliban called the killing of the commander a great loss for the movement, the broadcaster said.
Afghanistan has long been in a state of turmoil, with the government fighting the Taliban radical movement, which has been holding vast territories in rural areas under its control and regularly launches offensives in key big cities.
The situation has been exacerbated by the activities of the Islamic State terrorist group (IS, banned in Russia), which has been operating in Afghanistan since 2015.