Taliban militants occupied a provincial capital near Kabul on Thursday. This is the 10th day of a week-long bombing by rebels in Afghanistan as the United States and NATO prepare to withdraw from the country completely after decades of war. Taliban fighters hoisted a white flag bearing the famous Islamic declaration over the city of Ghazni, only 130 kilometers (80 miles) southwest of Kabul. Two local officials said that sporadic fighting continued in an intelligence base and a military facility on the outskirts of the city.
The Taliban posted videos and pictures of their presence in Ghazni, the capital of Ghazni Province. During several days of fighting, the Afghan security forces and the government did not respond to multiple requests for comment. However, before the United States and NATO withdraw their troops at the end of this month, President Ashraf Ghani is trying to rely on the country’s special forces, warlord militia, and U.S. air power to organize a counterattack. Directly threatened in advance, the astonishing speed of the offensive raises questions about how long the Afghan government can control the fragments of the country it leaves behind.
In other cities, thousands of people displaced by the fighting fled to Kabul and now live in open fields and parks. Amanullah Kamrani, a member of the Ghazni Provincial Assembly, said that the two bases outside the city are still in the hands of government forces. Ghazni MP Mohammad Arif Rahmani also said that the city had collapsed before the insurgents. At the same time, fighting broke out in Lashkar Gah, one of Afghanistan’s largest cities, located in the center of the Taliban in Helmand Province.
The besieged government forces hoped to continue fighting there. After a week-long bombardment of militants, the capital has already seen that they have occupied 9 other countries across the country. On Wednesday, a suicide car bomb attack marked the latest wave of attacks on police headquarters in the capital region. Helmand Provincial Assemblyman Nasima Niazi said that by Thursday, the Taliban had occupied the building, some police surrendered to the militants, and others retreated to the nearby governor, who is still controlled by government forces. office. The Taliban attack caused casualties to members of the security forces, but there were no casualties.
He said that another suicide car bombing hit the provincial prison, but the government still prevented it. In the past week, other developments by the Taliban have allowed militants to release hundreds of members and strengthen their ranks when they seized weapons and vehicles provided by the United States. Nyazi criticized the ongoing air strikes in the area, saying that civilians are likely to be injured and killed. He said that the Taliban used civilian houses to protect themselves and the government, and carried out air strikes regardless of civilians. It is not clear what casualties were caused by the US bombing operations. The US Air Force Central Command based in Qatar did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday.
