The World : Afghan Clashes Kill 280

Afghan guerrillas battled government forces in four provinces and fired rockets into Kabul, the capital, the government said. In all, nearly 280 people were reported killed in the fighting, including 12 in Kabul. The government said the main fighting was around Jalalabad and Khost in eastern Afghanistan, Kandahar in the south, and Herat in the west. In neighboring Pakistan, a Foreign Ministry official denied an American newspaper report that Pakistani officials had ordered an unsuccessful rebel attack on Jalalabad that began March 6. Pakistan’s military has played a key role in supporting the rebels, who have suffered heavy casualties around Jalalabad, and the fighting there appears to be a stalemate.