MAIMANA – Local officials on Tuesday said hundreds of Taliban militantsstormed the headquarters of Almar district in northern Faryab province,killing two policemen. They warned the district would collapse ifreinforcements did not arrive.

Mohammad Saleh Saleh, the Almar district chief, told Pajhwok Afghan Newsthat the Taliban attacked the district center on Monday night, sparking abattle that killed two policemen.

Having no information if the Taliban had suffered any casualties, Salehaccused the government of negligence and not equipping security forces.

He said the government should have launched a clearing operation long agoand that the Taliban outnumbered local security forces at least 10 times.

Saleh also claimed the Taliban were running a bomb making factory inAbgardan area of the district, which they captured five months ago.

The Taliban had so far attacked the district center and the district policebuilding many times during the past two weeks, the official said.

Saleh said the central government and provincial governments had ignoredthese attacks and warned the district would fall to the Taliban if thesituation continued.

Meanwhile, Mohammad Hanif Bai, Faryab highway commander, said his forceshad reached the district center soon after the Taliban launched attack onit on Monday night.

He said his nephew, Turdi Pahlawan and a sergeant were killed during theclash with the Taliban in Almar district center.

Gen. Ghulam Faroq Qatay, an uprising commander in Almar, also criticizedthe government for negligence and said only five of 90 villages in thedistrict were under the government control.

Faryab police spokesman Abdul Karim Yurish confirmed the loss of twopolicemen in the battle with Taliban in Almar district on Monday night andsaid that the rebels had also suffered casualties. However, he had no exactfigures.