As many as five police personnel were killed and two others wounded when Taliban fighters attacked a police checkpoint in western Farah province, an Afghan official said on Friday.

The attack has been carried out in the morning in Bala Bluk district and clashes between the police and Taliban fighters lasted for hours before the arrival of reinforcements from the Afghan national army who pushed the Taliban fighters out of the district, ABC news reported, quoting the spokesman for the provincial chief of police Iqbal Baher as saying.

Afghan air force struck three Taliban vehicles as they tried to escape, killing at least 20 Taliban fighters, the spokesman added.