CLASHES BETWEEN AFGHAN FORCES, TALIBAN IN GHOR PROVINCE LEAVE 20 SOLDIERS KILLED

Sat 12 June 2021:

At least 20 security forces were killed and 20 others were wounded in heavy clashes with the Taliban in Tolak district of Afghanistan’s Ghor province, informed sources on Saturday.

Salman Yusufi, district governor for Tolak, said that at least 20 security force members were killed on Friday and 20 more were wounded in the clashes in the district, which has fallen to the Taliban after the conflict, reported TOLO News.

Yusufi further said that at least 10 security force members have been captured by the Taliban and criticised the lack of attention by relevant officials to supply equipment to the forces.

This comes after the Afghan Defense Ministry said that civilian and military institutions in Zare district in the northern province of Balkh were shifted to another place on Saturday due to limited access to the district for supplying equipment to security forces.

The Taliban has claimed to have captured the Zare district on Saturday, further reported TOLO News.

At least 17 districts have fallen to Taliban over the last two months, sources and officials have confirmed, including Burka district in Baghlan, Qaisar district in Faryab and Shahrak district in Ghor.

The Taliban claims they have also captured Charkh district in Logar, Do Ab, and Mandol districts in Nuristan, Farsi district in Herat, Deh Yak district in Ghazni, Gezab district in Daikundi, and Shinkai district in Zabul.

Taliban also launched attacks on several fronts in Nimroz and Badakhshan provinces.

“We have lost several parts of Arghanjkhwah district in Badakhshan. The problem will get worse if the government does not take action regarding the issue,” said Hujjatullah Farahmand, MP from Badakhshan.

Earlier, it was reported that the Pentagon is mulling to authorise airstrikes in Afghanistan if the country falls into crisis due to the rise in violence by the Taliban in the country following US troops pull-out.

US President Joe Biden is also under pressure to evacuate Afghans who helped US forces during the conflict and are at risk of being hunted by the Taliban.