Taliban fighters enter Kunduz, mount assault

October 03, 2016 10:47 am | Updated November 16, 2021 02:52 pm IST - KUNDUZ (AFGHANISTAN):

Launch coordinated attacks on northern Afghan city, outfit’s spokesman says many soldiers killed.

Afghan National Army soldiers stand next to an outpost where 12 soldiers were killed by their comrades in the northern city of Kunduz in Afghanistan in this September 27, 2016 photo. Taliban fighters mounted a coordinated assault on the northern city of Kunduz from around midnight (1930 GMT Sunday), attacking it from four directions and entering the city itself, a senior city police official said. Taliban spokesman says many soldiers were killed.

Afghan National Army soldiers stand next to an outpost where 12 soldiers were killed by their comrades in the northern city of Kunduz in Afghanistan in this September 27, 2016 photo. Taliban fighters mounted a coordinated assault on the northern city of Kunduz from around midnight (1930 GMT Sunday), attacking it from four directions and entering the city itself, a senior city police official said. Taliban spokesman says many soldiers were killed.

Taliban fighters mounted a coordinated assault on the northern city of Kunduz overnight, attacking from four directions and entering the city itself, a senior city police official said.

Sheer Ali Kamal, commander of the 808 Tandar police zone in Kunduz, said the attack began at around midnight (1930 GMT Sunday) and fighting was still going on in and around the city. “We are putting all our efforts together to push them back," he said.

Military helicopters were flying overhead and gunfire could be heard in the city.

Repeated bouts of heavy fight

Kunduz, which fell briefly to the Taliban a year ago, has seen repeated bouts of heavy fighting as the insurgents have sought to repeat their success of 2015.

Monday’s attack, a day before the start of a major donor conference in Brussels, underlines the precarious security situation in Afghanistan, where government forces are estimated to have control over no more than two thirds of the country.

“A massive operation started on Kunduz capital from four directions early this morning,” Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said in his official Twitter account. He said the Nawabad area with four checkpoints had been captured and a number of soldiers had been killed. It was not immediately possible to verify the claim.

Five Taliban fighters seen

A Reuters reporter saw at least five Taliban fighters armed with AK-47 assault rifles, machines guns and rocket-propelled grenades in the city.

The attack came as the Taliban have stepped up operations in different parts of Afghanistan, including the strategic southern province of Helmand, where they have been threatening the provincial capital of Lashkar Gah.

The fall of Kunduz last year was one of the most serious blows suffered by the Western-backed government in Kabul since the withdrawal of most international troops at the end of 2014.

Growing strength

Although the insurgents abandoned the city after a few days, the demonstration that they were able to take a provincial capital underlined their growing strength and exposed serious flaws in Afghan security forces.

A Taliban raid on Tarin Kot, the provincial capital of Uruzgan in the south, on September 8 also sparked fears of another collapse like that in Kunduz last year.

Mujahid said in the Taliban statement that the militants were pressing ahead with their assaults on Helmand and Uruzgan.

Ahead of 2-day global meet

Afghanistan’s international partners are due to start a two-day conference in Brussels on Tuesday, where they are expected to approve maintaining billions of dollars in funding for the government over the next four years.

Top News Today

Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.