Afghan forces on offensive against Taliban in Sangin

Afghan security forces have launched their latest offensive in the Sangin district, where the Taliban are largely in control, police said Thursday.

The militant group has taken over the entire district except for the police chief's compound and another compound, where a battalion of the Afghan National Army is based, according to Shah Mahmood Ashna, a spokesman for the police chief in Helmand province.

The police chief's compound remained under attack, and food and ammunition were in short supply, Ashna said. Some Afghan National Army reinforcements arrived via helicopter on Wednesday. Wounded forces were ferried out.

The Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police forces killed a number of Taliban fighters and their commander in Thursday's military operation, a spokesman for the Afghan Interior Ministry told CNN.

The commander killed in the offensive is considered to be a close confidant of the leader of the Taliban, Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansour, officials said.

The Afghan forces had some support from the United States, the spokesman for NATO's Operation Resolute Support told CNN on Thursday.

Col. Michael T. Lawhorn said there were two U.S.-led airstrikes in Sangin on Wednesday night against Taliban fighters in the field who posed a threat to Afghan forces.