Taliban release 160 civilians but keep at least 20 others captive, official says

The Taliban on Tuesday released at least 160 civilians after they had kidnapped them from northern Afghanistan on Monday.

However, they have still kept more than 20 soldiers and policemen captive. 

"More than 160 civilians have reached home safely but at least 20 soldiers and policemen have been taken to an undisclosed location by the Taliban," said Ghulam Rabani Rabani, a provincial council member in Kunduz.

Insurgents ambushed three buses and nearly 200 passengers near the northern province of Kunduz on Monday traveling for a holiday.

The two Taliban commanders said their supreme leader rejected President Ashraf Ghani's Sunday offer of a three-month ceasefire, beginning with this week's Eid al-Adha Muslim holiday.

On Tuesday, multiple rockets hit near the diplomatic area in the Afghan capital Kabul, as officials said fighting had broken out between security forces and militants in the city's old quarter.

It was not immediately clear who was responsible for the attack, which came just days after Afghan President Ashraf Ghani offered the Taliban a three-month ceasefire.