Eight smugglers slain

DUSHANBE (AP):

Tajik security officials say border guards have killed eight Afghan drug smugglers attempting to cross into the ex-Soviet nation.

The National State Security Committee said yesterday that border troops were on a routine patrol in the southern Khatlon district when they spotted a group of 12 people crossing a river dividing the two countries.

It said a gunfight broke out after troops attempted to detain the drug couriers. It is unclear if there were any casualties among the border guards.

A large quantity of drugs and weapons was later found at the site of the clash.

Tajikistan shares a winding 1,350-kilometre (838.89-mile) border with Afghanistan, which severely complicates efforts to clamp down on the vast flow of drugs coming through.