Afghan forces clash with Taliban for second day

Taliban militants who staged a wave of attacks on a major Afghan city, killing four people, were holding out for a second day yesterday as sporadic firefights kept residents on lockdown.
Nearly 50 people have been wounded in 24 hours since militiamen armed with suicide vests, guns and rocket-propelled grenades besieged targets in Kandahar including the governor's office, police stations and the local intelligence HQ.
The attacks are the most significant since the Taliban announced the start of their annual spring offensive last week and vowed to step up their fight after US commandos killed Osama bin Laden in neighbouring Pakistan.
But provincial governor Toryalai Wesa said the militants also suffered heavy losses during the fighting -- 18 insurgents were killed and seven captured.
As the biggest city in the south and the Taliban's birthplace, control of Kandahar is seen as key to US-led efforts to end the nearly 10-year Taliban insurgency and hand Afghan forces responsibility for national security by 2014.
The dramatic standoff began at around 1:00 pm Saturday when a squad of militants attacked the governor's office from nearby buildings.
Officials said at least 10 blasts, including seven suicide attacks, rocked the city as assaults spread rapidly to other sites.