Taliban complete northeast Afghan blitz as more cities fall
By TAMEEM AKHGAR and JON GAMBRELL Associated Press
August 11, 2021 07:51 AM
Taliban fighters are seen inside the city of Farah, capital of Farah province southwest of Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday,
The Taliban seized three more provincial capitals in Afghanistan and a local army headquarters completing their blitz across the country’s northeast and pressing their offensive elsewhere, officials said Wednesday. The insurgents now control some two-thirds of the nation as the U.S. and NATO finalize their withdrawal after a decades-long war there.
The fall of the capitals of Badakhshan and Baghlan provinces to the northeast and Farah province to the west put increasing pressure on the country’s central government to stem the tide of the advance, even as its lost a major base in Kunduz. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani rushed to Balkh province, already surrounded by Taliban-held territory, to seek help in pushing back the insurgents from warlords linked to allegations of atrocities and corruption. He also replaced his army chief of staff.
While the capital of Kabul itself has not been directly threatened in the advance, the stunning speed of the offensive raises questions of how long the Afghan government can maintain control of its countryside. The multiple fronts of the battle have stretched the government's special operations forces — while regular troops have often fled the battlefield — and the violence has pushed thousands of civilians to seek safety in the capital.
Read more here:
https://www.heraldonline.com/news/business/technology/article253411015.html#storylink=cpy
