Baber Khan Sahel
08/08/2021 4:31 PM
Clarín.com
World
Updated 08/08/2021 4:35 PM
After the withdrawal of the United States, the advance of the Taliban in Afghanistan continues unstoppable
with the seizure of three other provincial capitals
, thus raising to five the regional centers that fell this week under insurgent control, in its greatest achievement in 20 years of war.
After days of heavy fighting, this Sunday they
captured the northern cities of Kunduz and Sar-e-Pol
, capitals of the homonymous provinces, and the northeastern Taloqan, capital of Takhar, the last to fall in an unfortunate day for the Afghan security forces .
"After a month and a half of resistance on the outskirts of the city, and as the fighting intensified today with the Taliban fighting street by street, (...) it was decided to evacuate (Taloqan).
The city has now fallen under the Taliban
"Deputy Ashraf Uddin Aini, who represents Takhar in Parliament, assured Efe.
Earlier in the morning, the security forces
had also left the city of Kunduz
to barricade themselves at the provincial airport, while the Taliban took the opportunity to tear down a prison wall and thus free hundreds of inmates, including insurgents.
Smoke and fire in Kunduz.
AP Photo
The headquarters of the governor, the police and other government buildings
are "for now in the hands of the insurgents," and most civilians remain in their homes or wander from one place to another towards the safest areas, Nelofar Koofi explained to Efe. , MP for Kunduz in the national Lower House.
Malik, a resident of the city, assured Efe that
the capital is in chaos
and "heavy fighting" is taking place.
In addition, a textile market has caught fire, he noted, something that was confirmed by the images that were arriving from the city published on social networks.
The Army, in a statement, however, has assured that the special forces are carrying out
an operation to "clear"
the city of insurgents, in which they have managed to recover a roundabout and the National Radio Television building.
The Taliban had already taken Kunduz in 2015,
of great strategic value by connecting several provinces and bordering Tajikistan, managing to stay there for two days, an unprecedented achievement since the fall of their regime with the US invasion in 2001.
The three capitals
Another of the capitals that fell under Taliban control this Sunday after fighting heavy fighting all night
was Sar-e-Pol
, the deputy for the province Aziza Jalis explained to Efe.
"The Taliban captured the entire city" and now the security forces and provincial officials are "
at an army base in a corner"
of the capital, the parliamentarian noted.
Afghan soldiers control the city of Herat.
AP Photo
The insurgents
also took over the jail,
although they have not yet released the prisoners, he said.
The population, meanwhile,
is trapped between the two fires.
"We don't know what to do, we are being held in our homes
and we only hear the shots and explosions. The city is empty," Farooq, one of the residents, told Efe.
Sar-e-Pol province
is one of the least developed regions of the country
and much of its territory was already under Taliban control, but its capital had never fallen in the last 20 years of war.
The main spokesman for the Taliban, Zabihullah Mujahid, celebrated in several statements the capture of Kunduz, Sar-e-Pol and Taloqan, and
also assured that they had taken possession of a large number of weapons.
"All government employees, activists and other civil society groups
must live in peace, no one is under threat,
" the Taliban spokesman remarked, an announcement that is nevertheless seen as a ploy for their quick arrest.
Progress
This new achievement by the Taliban
comes after the capture on Saturday of Sheberghan, capital of the northwestern province of Jawzjan, bordering Turkmenistan, after a day before they took control of Zaranj, capital of southwestern Nimroz, which borders Iran.
The five provincial capitals are the first to fall into the hands of the Taliban since the beginning of their great offensive,
which coincided with the start on May 1 of the final phase of the withdrawal of foreign troops
from Afghanistan.
It is also the greatest Taliban achievement in the country in two decades of conflict.
Exodus in Herat, 640 kilometers from Kabul.
AP Photo
The Afghan Army,
with the occasional support of US aviation
, is intensifying its fighting to regain lost territory, with clashes in at least 19 of the 34 Afghan provinces, which have left at least 572 insurgents dead and 309 wounded in the last 24 hours, according to the Ministry of Defense.
Meanwhile, civilian deaths continue,
like the 12 members of the same family, including six children, who died last night after a bomb exploded at the passing of their vehicle in the Paktia province, in the southeast of the country.
EFE Agency
PB
Look also
Afghanistan: Taliban execute Afghan media director in Kabul
Climate of war in Afghanistan: civilians flee, Taliban advance