20 soldiers killed in northern Afghanistan

Twenty soldiers have been killed in an attack in Afghanistan northern Badakhshan province.

A Taliban attack on a military post in Afghanistan's northern Badakhshan province has left 20 soldiers dead.

A number of other soldiers were wounded in the overnight attack in the province's Jurm district, said Mahbob-ul-Rahman Talaat, a provincial council member.

At least six security personnel were taken hostage, he said.

The Taliban have controlled parts of Badakhshan province for years.

The attack took place on the second day of a unilateral government truce announced last week.

At least 27 members of the security forces were killed and more than 50 others were wounded on day one of the ceasefire in Faryab and Sar-e-Pul in the north and Ghazni in the southeast, according to officials.

The government ceasefire covers the Taliban, but not Islamic State.