Afghan police kill 30 insurgents: Interior Ministry

KABUL (Reuters) - Afghan police have killed 30 insurgents in a joint operation in Afghanistan's southern province of Uruzgan, the Interior Ministry said on Tuesday.

Violence in Afghanistan last year escalated to its worst level since U.S.-led forces toppled the Taliban in 2001.

Taliban commander Mullah Mohammad Yaqoub was among the dead in the operation on Monday and 17 militants were also wounded, the ministry said in a statement.

It did not say whether the police had suffered any casualties in the raid and gave no further details.

The Taliban could not be reached immediately for comment and because of the remoteness of the province, Reuters had no independent verification of the ministry's report.

Taliban militants are largely active in the south and east, though since last year have managed to increase the size and scope of their attacks toward the capital.

The growing violence has prompted some Western politicians to warn that Afghanistan may slide back into anarchy despite the number of foreign forces standing at more than 70,000.

The new U.S. administration plans to send an extra 17,000 troops along with 4,000 trainers for Afghan forces this year ahead of elections in August.

(Reporting by Sayed Salahuddin, Editing by Jeremy Laurence)