On Wednesday, the Taliban launched their first assault on Afghanistan provincial capital Qala-i-Naw since engaging in a major offensive against Afghan forces, as the withdrawal of US troops from the country approaches completion.
Fierce fighting has erupted in the western city of Qala-i-Naw, the capital of Badghis, with the militants seizing police headquarters and offices of the country’s spy agency.
As per a report published on NDTV, the insurgents have pressed ahead with a dizzying campaign since US and NATO forces began the final withdrawal from the country, seizing dozens of rural districts and stirring fears that the Afghan government is in crisis.
But the attack on the city of Qala-i-Naw, in western Badghis Province, marks the first time the Taliban have aimed to overrun a provincial capital.
“The enemy has entered the city, all the districts have fallen. The fighting has started inside the city,” Badghis governor Hessamuddin Shams told reporters in a text message.
Badghis provincial council chief Abdul Aziz Bek said some security officials had surrendered to the Taliban during the night.
“The provincial council officials have fled to an army camp in the city. Fighting continues in the city,” added Badghis provincial council member Zia Gul Habibi.
She said that the Taliban were inside the city’s police headquarters and the local office of the country’s spy agency, the National Directorate of Security.