Taliban kills 100, beheads 15 in Afghanistan

GHAZNI, Afghanistan, Sept. 26 (UPI) -- A brutal Taliban attack Friday in eastern Afghanistan's Ghazni province killed at least 100 people, with 15 beheaded, a provincial leader said.

The assault came after a week of fighting about 60 miles southwest of the capital of Kabul. About 700 Taliban militants, some claiming to represent the Islamic State, overran and burned several villages. Ahmadullah Ahmadi, provincial deputy governor, said at least 15 civilians were beheaded. He added that the insurgents burned houses, killed livestock and destroyed wheat crops.

The town of Ghazni, one of the communities attacked, lies on a road to Kabul, and could provide a strategic base of operations for attacks on the capital.

A deputy police chief said he requested help from Kabul in responding to the attacks, but "so far nothing has been done." Ahmadi added local police were running out of ammunition, and the district could fall to the Taliban without air support from the government.