KABUL: Taliban have taken control of the sixth provincial Afghan capital today (Monday) as the country’s government struggle to keep the militants at bay amid the withdrawal of foreign forces.
“Insurgents entered Aibak without a fight after community elders pleaded with officials to spare the city from more violence following weeks of clashes on the outskirts”, said Sefatullah Samangani, deputy governor of Samangan province.
“The governor accepted and withdrew all the forces from the city,” Samangani said, adding that the Taliban were now in full control. A Taliban spokesman confirmed the city had been taken.
The insurgents have overrun five provincial capitals across the north, sparking fears the government is rapidly losing control of the region. They have also taken Zaranj, capital of Nimroz province, in the southwest.
The Taliban, fighting to reimpose rule after their 2001 ouster, have stepped up their campaign to defeat the government as foreign forces withdraw after 20 years of war.
Earlier Monday, the Taliban said they were moving in on Mazar-i-Sharif —a linchpin for the government’s control of the region — after capturing Sheberghan to its west, and Kunduz and Taloqan to its east.
As the Taliban pressed ahead in the north, fighting also raged in the south, where Afghan forces have been locked in heavy street-to-street fighting with the Taliban.
The insurgents have been trying to take Kandahar and Lashkar Gah — both with Pashtun majorities from where the Taliban draw their strength. “We’re clearing houses, roads, and buildings that the Taliban occupy,” General Sami Sadat, commander of the Afghan army’s 215 Corps said.
The ministry of defence said hundreds of Taliban fighters had been killed or injured in the last 24 hours. Both sides routinely exaggerate death tolls that are virtually impossible to verify.
Fighting in Afghanistan’s long-running conflict has escalated dramatically since May, when the US-led military coalition began the final stage of a withdrawal set to be completed before the end of the month.
The withdrawal of foreign forces is due to finish at the end of this month ahead of the 20th anniversary of the September 11 attacks. The US-led invasion sparked by 9/11 toppled the first Taliban regime in 2001.
