KABUL, Nov. 6 (Xinhua) -- Afghan police forces eliminated at least 17 insurgents in Helmand province of southern Afghanistan in a clash with Taliban insurgents on Wednesday, said a police official on Thursday.

    Assadullah Shirzad, the provincial police chief told Xinhua that a group of Taliban ambushed the police patrol in Nad Ali district on Wednesday evening.

    "After calling for reinforcement, police forces surrounded and returned fire at the rebels killing at least 17 people and 15 of the dead bodies were left in the battlefield," Shirzad said. "Clash also left two policemen wounded, but no civilian casualties have been reported so far."

    Meanwhile, Qari Yusuf Ahmadi, the purported Taliban spokesman confirmed the incident but denied any casualties in the clash.

    The unrest Helmand province has seen surge of Talian activities since the past two months as the radical outfit for several times launched attacks on the capital city of Lashkar Gha keeping mounting pressure on the Afghan government and international troops stationed there.

    Spiraling conflicts and Taliban-linked insurgency have claimed around 5,000 people mostly militants so far this year in strife-torn Afghanistan while Taliban insurgents have vowed to intensify assaults against interests of Afghan government and international troops before the coming winter.