Up to 12 Taliban insurgents have been killed and 20 detained in military operations in nine Afghan provinces within the past 24 hours, the country's Interior Ministry said Wednesday morning.

"Afghan police, army and NATO-led coalition forces launched nine joint cleanup operations in Kunar, Balkh, Kandahar, Zabul, Uruzgan, Ghazni, Khost, Farah and Helmand provinces, killing 12 armed Taliban insurgents and detaining 20 suspected armed men throughout the 24 hours," the ministry said in a statement providing daily operational updates to media.

They also found and seized weapons, the statement said, without saying if there were any casualties on the side of security forces.

The Taliban insurgent group, which announced the launching of an annual spring offensive from May 3 against Afghan and NATO forces, has not to make comments yet.