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Taliban captures second Afghan provincial capital in as many days,
after withdrawal of US troops – reports
7 Aug, 2021 14:51
Taliban fighters reportedly entered the capital of Afghanistan’s Jawzjan province on Saturday, amid a large-scale offensive that saw the group take over the main city of the southwestern Nimroz province (3rd story on link) just a day earlier.
The militants swept through nine out of 10 districts of the northern province, which borders the former Soviet republic of Turkmenistan, before forcing their way into the regional capital, Sheberghan, local official Mohammad Karim Jawzjani told the AP news agency.
The Afghan central government said the strategic city hadn’t yet fallen and that fighting was continuing in the streets. However, sources told TOLONews the security forces were in control only of the provincial airport, in Khwaja Dako, some 17km (10 miles) from Sheberghan.
More than a dozen media outlets, including television and radio networks, reportedly stopped broadcasting in the province on Saturday. There were heavy airstrikes in Sheberghan, according to locals. They also reported that the militants had freed the inmates from the local prison.
The Taliban entrenchment in Sheberghan represents a major setback for the government, as the city serves as a stronghold of the US-allied Uzbek warlord Abdul Rashid Dostum, whose militias are supporting Kabul in the ongoing conflict.
On Friday, the Taliban gained control of Zaranj, in Nimroz province – the first provincial capital to succumb to the group. Their fighters have been filmed making victory laps around the city in the US-made Humvees they seized after the retreat of government troops.
The gains come amid a major offensive by the group, which have increased in recent weeks, starting with districts in rural areas and expanding to the provincial capitals.
The Taliban intensified its military activities and terror attacks in Kabul and other major cities as soon as US troops, who had been stationed in Afghanistan for two decades, began leaving the country. The withdrawal, the deadline for which is August 31, is currently 95% complete, according to US Central Command.
On Saturday, US warplanes were still providing aerial support to Afghan forces in an effort to contain the insurgents in Helmand and Kandahar provinces.
Apparently, it's not working so well.
Taliban overruns most of Kunduz as Afghan military
clings to strategic city’s airport
8 Aug, 2021 14:35
FILE PHOTO. Afghan security personnel patrol along a road on the outskirts of Herat, on August 6, 2021. © AFP
Taliban militants have captured another provincial capital, Sar-e Pul, and most of the fifth-largest city of Kunduz, according to local officials. Afghan special forces have been deployed in a bid to re-take the latter.
The militants seized all the key government buildings in the two cities overnight, pushing the government troops to military installations on their outskirts. The troops are currently clinging onto the airport in Kunduz, in the north of the country.
“Heavy clashes started yesterday afternoon. All government headquarters are in the control of the Taliban. Only the army base and the airport is with ANDSF [Afghan security forces] from where they are resisting the Taliban,” provincial lawmaker Amruddin Wali told Reuters.
Footage circulating online shows the militants roaming the city streets en masse, with the group’s flags hoisted on multiple military vehicles.
Kunduz’s market was destroyed in the fighting, with disturbing footage purporting to show the whole location on fire. It was not immediately clear how exactly the market was obliterated, with some reports suggesting it was targeted by American warplanes supporting the Afghan troops. On Saturday, the US military launched airstrikes against the Taliban in a bid to halt its offensive, sending in B-52 Stratofortress strategic bombers and AC-130 Spectre gunships.
Although the Taliban claimed it was in full control of Kunduz, the government said it had re-deployed special forces units to the city and was trying to push back the militants. A short video released by Afghan military spokesperson Fawad Aman shows special forces troops advancing through the streets, firing at unseen adversaries.
The situation in the northwestern city of Sar-e Pul appears to be similar to that in Kunduz. Its key locations have been overrun by the militants, with government forces retreating to a military base on its fringes.
“Government headquarters, including the governor’s house, police command, and the National Directorate of Security compound, are captured by the Taliban,” Mohammad Noor Rahmani, a Sar-e Pul provincial council member, told Reuters.
Over the past few days, the Taliban has put the government troops under heavy pressure, apparently switching the focus of its offensive from rural areas to major cities. Two provincial capitals, Zaranj in the southwest and Sheberghan in the north, have already fallen into the hands of the militant group.
This is eerily like watching ISIS as they charged freely across northern Syria and Iraq. Will American B52 bombers be able to do anything to stop the charge other than destroying Afghan cities?
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