Death Toll Rises to 50 in 27-Hour Kandahar Airport Siege

The death toll in the 27-hour Taliban siege on December 9 at the Kandahar airport in Afghanistan has risen to 50.

An Afghan security man stands guard at a police station following clashes between the Afghan police and Taliban militants in Kandahar. (Photo: AP)

The death toll in the 27-hour Taliban siege on the Kandahar airport in Afghanistan has risen to 50.

The death toll from the attack, which took place on December 9, was reported to be 37 on that day.

The Afghan Defense Ministry said Thursday that the dead included 38 civilians, 10 Afghan soldiers and two police officers. It said the 11 “terrorists” who took part in the assault were killed, and that fighting ended late Wednesday.

Afghan forces have struggled to roll back Taliban advances since the US and NATO formally concluded their combat mission at the end of last year.

The sprawling airport, known as Kandahar Air Field, has a military and a civilian section, as well as a NATO base. There were no coalition casualties in the attack.