Gun battle between police and Taliban insurgents has left 23 policemen and five civilians dead in Nuristan province in eastern Afghanistan, provincial governor Jamaludin Badar said Wednesday.

"In the battle over control of Kamdish district Tuesday, 23 policemen of Border Police Force have been killed so far," Badar told Xinhua.

Five civilians were also killed and seven policemen injured in the clash, some of them in critical condition, he said.

He said that some 40 Taliban militants were killed and injured in the gun battle.

"Taliban insurgents, many of them foreign nationals, have retreated and the district is in our control," Badar emphasized.

Meanwhile, Zabihullah Mujahid, a Taliban spokesman, claimed over 30 policemen were killed in the battle.

 VietNamNet/Xinhuanet