KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) - Afghan and U.S.-led coalition forces surrounded a rebel hide-out in southern Afghanistan on Thursday, and the number of insurgents killed from three days of fighting rose to 102, the defense ministry said.
The battle was one of the deadliest since the Taliban's ouster more than three years ago and was sure to add to growing anxiety that an Iraq-style conflict is developing here.
``A total of 102 Taliban have been killed since the fighting started on Tuesday,'' Defense Ministry spokesman Zahir Marad said, 26 more than were reported on Wednesday evening. ``These deaths will have a huge impact on the rebels. Many are trying to flee. But we have them surrounded.''
The U.S. military Wednesday put the rebel death toll at 49. Lt. Cindy Moore, a spokeswoman for the force, said there had been no update since then and referred questions to the Afghan government.
Gen. Salim Khan, commander of 400 Afghan policemen who took part in the fighting, said the insurgents had been hit hard.
``Their camps were decimated. Bodies lay everywhere. Heavy machine guns and AK-47s were scattered alongside blankets, kettles and food,'' he told The Associated Press. ``Some of the Taliban were also killed in caves where they were hiding and U.S. helicopters came and pounded them.''
