Within the past 24 hours, two of the largest cities in the country, Herat in west and Kandahar south, have been overthrown by the insurgents. Also, Helmand’s capital has fallen to the rebels. This is the place where the American, British, and NATO forces engaged in some of the most bloody battles in the conflict.
The Taliban’s southern heartland is now under control of more than half of Afghanistan’s 34 provincial capitals. The Western-backed Kabul government still controls a few provinces in the centre and east as well as Mazar-i-Sharif in the north.
Although Kabul isn’t directly at risk, the Taliban resurgents were fighting government forces in Logar, about 80 km (50 miles) away from the capital. According to the U.S. military, Kabul could be under insurgent pressure in 30 days. The Taliban could also overrun the country in a matter of months. They have already seized large swathes of the country’s north and west.
Attaullah Afghanistan, head of the provincial council, Helmand said that the Taliban had captured Lashkar Gah after weeks of intense fighting and raised their white flag above governmental buildings. He stated that three of the army bases located outside the city are still under government control.
Taliban fighters marched through Tirin Kot’s capital, the southern Uruzgan provincial capital, driving a Humvee, and a pickup that was seized from Afghan forces. Local officials confirmed that the Taliban had also taken the capitals in Zabul province, in the south, and Ghor, in the west.
With security rapidly deteriorating, the United States planned to send in 3,000 troops to help evacuate some personnel from the U.S. Embassy in Kabul. Canada and Britain are also contributing forces to the evacuations. Denmark announced that it would temporarily close its Embassy in Copenhagen, while Germany will reduce its staff at the Embassy to an “absolute minimum”.
The UN chief called on the Taliban to stop its offensive immediately and to negotiate in good faith to avoid a prolonged civil conflict. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres made his strongest appeal to the Islamic militant organization. He stated that he was “deeply disturbed” by the Taliban’s early signs of imposing severe restrictions on areas under their control. This included targeting journalists and women.
He stated, “It’s particularly disturbing and heartbreaking to hear reports about the hard-won rights Afghan girls and women are being stripped away.”
Hundreds of thousands of Afghans have fled their homes amid fears the Taliban will return the country to the sort of brutal, repressive rule it imposed when it was last in power at the turn of the millennium. The group imposed a strict version of Islamic law and essentially abolished women’s rights. Insurgents in Herat paraded two looters in the streets of Herat on Friday, with black makeup on their faces.
There are also fears that fighting could lead to civil war in the country, as happened in 1989 after the Soviets retreated.
“We are concerned. There are fighting all over Afghanistan. Ahmad Sakhi, a Kabul resident, said that the provinces are falling every day. “The government must do something. People are facing many problems.”
According to the U.N. refugee agency, nearly 250,000 Afghans were forced from their homes by May 31st. 80% of those who have fled are children and women. The agency stated that around 400,000 civilians were displaced by the start of the year. This includes millions of people who fled fighting in the past.
The peace talks between the Taliban government and Qatar remain deadlocked, although diplomats continue to meet, as the U.S. and European nations warned that military gains would not lead directly to political recognition.
Zalmay Khalilzad (the U.S. ambassador to the talks) stated that they demand an immediate halt to attacks on cities and urge a political settlement.
However, the Taliban continued to advance.
Head of the Logar provincial council Hasibullah Stanikzai said that fighting continued inside Puli-e Alim with government forces occupying the police headquarters and other security institutions. His office was his phone, and gunfire can be heard in the background. However, the Taliban claimed they had taken control of the police headquarters and another nearby prison.
After nearly two decades of trying to establish a functioning country, the United States spent $830 billion on this attack. In the aftermath of the Sept. 11 2001 attacks, U.S. forces overthrew the Taliban while al-Qaida was sheltered by the Taliban government.
The United States plans to withdraw its last troops in the next few weeks. Now, the fighters are advancing across the country on American-made Humvees. They also carry M-16s stolen from Afghan forces.
Bill Roggio is a senior fellow at Foundation for Defense of Democracies. He said that the Afghan army had rotted internally due to corruption, mismanagement, and left troops in the field with little motivation and very little equipment. Meanwhile, the Taliban have spent over a decade gaining control of large swathes of the countryside.
They were able to quickly seize key infrastructure and urban areas after President Joe Biden announced that the U.S. would withdraw from the war. He stated that he was determined end America’s longest-running war.
Roggio stated that whatever forces remain or are still present in Kabul and the surrounding provinces, they will be used to defend Kabul. These provinces that have fallen will be under Taliban control unless something drastic changes.
The Taliban fighters had rushed through Herat’s Great Mosque, a historic structure dating back to 500 BC, and took control of government buildings. Herat was under militant attack for the past two weeks.
Witnesses said that insurgents took the governor’s office in Kandahar and other buildings. They also added that the governor and other officials fled. The government has yet to acknowledge the defeat and they spoke under anonymity.
Officials said that the Taliban had previously attacked a Kandahar prison and released inmates.
Thursday was a day when Nasima Niazi from Helmand stated that civilians were likely to have been killed or injured in airstrikes. The U.S. Central Command acknowledged that it had carried out several strikes over the past few days without giving details or commenting on concerns about civilian casualties.
In neighboring Pakistan, Moeed Yusuf, Afghanistan’s national security advisor, urged Afghan leaders for a political settlement with Taliban to prevent further violence. Moeed Yusuf made this appeal to journalists in Islamabad, Pakistan’s capital. He stated that the fall of every city in Afghanistan was a reminder of the urgency to speed up the peace process.
