Afghan forces scouring mountains in southern Afghanistan after some of the deadliest fighting since the fall of the Taliban in 2001 have found the bodies of another 76 rebels, the Defense Ministry said Saturday. The new fatalities bring the death toll to 178 from fighting in the Miana Shien district of Kandahar province since Tuesday, ministry spokesman Zahir Marad said. "Our forces have collected the bodies of 76 more rebels from the battlefield," he said. Marad said he had not received any reports from Afghan army commanders as to whether the fighting was still continuing. Gen. Salim Khan, a police commander on the battlefield, said Friday that the guns had fallen silent, but his forces have kept up their pursuit of rebels fleeing on horseback and motorcycle. --MORE 1306 Local Time 1006 GMT
