Afghanistan’s Defense Ministry says the Taliban has killed nine government soldiers in an overnight attack on an army post in the Charkh District of Logar Province, in the eastern part of the country.



Fawad Aman, a spokesman at the ministry, told RFE/RL that Taliban the Taliban had suffered “heavy casualties,” in the violence, without giving further details.



Didar Ahmad Lawang, a spokesman for the governor of Logar, confirmed the number of soldiers killed.



The Taliban did not immediately comment.



Taliban militants have been carrying out attacks despite signing a peace deal with the United States in February aimed at ending the 18-year war.



That deal envisions the withdrawal of all foreign forces from Afghanistan by July 2021 in exchange for counterterrorism guarantees from the Taliban, which is obliged to launch direct talks with the Afghan government over a permanent cease-fire and a power-sharing arrangement.



Scheduled for March 10, the intra-Afghan negotiations have been delayed due to political bickering in Kabul and a dispute among the warring sides over a prisoner swap.