Ten Taliban insurgents have given up militancy and surrendered to government in Kunduz province 250 km north of capital Kabul Wednesday, a local official said Thursday.
"Ten Taliban fighters under Mullah Naeem laid down arms and surrendered to local authorities in Dasht-e-Archi district Wednesday evening," district governor Shikh Saadudin told Xinhua.
The former rebels also vowed to defend government, he added.
Taliban militants fighting Afghan and NATO-led troops have yet to make comment.
Security forces have sped up pressure against Taliban fighters in Kunduz and the neighboring Baghlan province over the past six months.
According to Kunduz police chief Abdul Rahman Syedkhili, Kunduz would soon be cleared up of Taliban insurgents. The districts of Chardara, Gortipa and Ali Abad, according Syedkhili have already been cleaned up of Taliban militants.