KANDAHAR (AFP) - Afghan and foreign forces killed 27 Taliban militants in gunfights and an airstrike in a rebel stronghold of Kandahar province, police and the government said Tuesday. The battles took place in Zeheri district in a joint operation to clear militant hideouts in the southern province, where the Taliban have a strong presence, said deputy Kandahar police chief Mohammad Shah Khan. During the operation Monday in Ashobo area, where the air force was also used, 27 armed opposition were killed. It was a Taliban hideout, he said. Afghanistans Defence Ministry confirmed the incident and the death toll, saying that operations in the area were ongoing. Qari Yousuf Ahmadi, a Taliban spokesman, told AFP four fighters were killed and five civilians died in the crossfire.