Four districts in two provinces fell under Taliban control in the last 24 hours; however, Afghan forces also made advances in Kunduz and Takhar, officials and other sources said.
The centers of Khwaja Omari, Muqor and Waghaz districts in Ghazni and Khoshamand district in Paktika fell to the Taliban in the last 24 hours, according to sources.
“From 18 districts in Ghazni, I think seven districts have fallen to the Taliban. In three districts, only the center is under government control and three are somehow good,” said Khoddad Irfani, an MP from Ghazni.
“Some bases and districts have already fallen (to the Taliban). Two more districts fell to the militants in the last 24 hours,” said Hamidullah Noori, member of the Ghazni provincial council.
After two weeks of clashes in different parts of Kunduz, particularly on the outskirts of Kunduz city, some stability has been restored since Sunday night.
“The situation in the city is good, it is improving. All shops have been reopened,” Kunduz resident said.
“Security should be ensured. How long should this war continue? We are not calm during the day and night,” said a Kunduz resident.
The security forces said they will continue their efforts to strengthen their posts on the outskirts of Kunduz city.
“All the security forces who have come to the center of Kunduz from other districts have been deployed to different parts of the city,” said Shah Mahmood Fazli, acting commander of the first regiment of 217 Pamir Corps.
Amid fierce battles in the last two months, Pakistan’s interior minister, Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, during an interview with Geo News said that families of Afghan Taliban reside in his country, including in the capital city of Islamabad.
He also said the Taliban receive medical treatment in Pakistani hospitals.
“Taliban families live here–in Pakistan, in Rawat, Loi Ber, Bara Kahuh and Tarnol,” Rashid told the Urdu-language network citing the names of Islamabad suburbs.
“Sometimes their dead bodies arrive and sometimes they come here in hospitals to get medical treatment,” he said.
Afghans responded to the remarks by the Pakistani minister, including National Security Adviser Hamdullah Mohib, who welcomed the disclosure. However, the Taliban rejected the remarks by the Pakistani minister and said their leaders and their families are living in Afghanistan.
https://tolonews.com/afghanistan-173148
