Taliban fighters have surrounded the city of Ghazni in central Afghanistan, taking over civilians' homes to fight security forces, officials said on Monday, the latest urban centre under threat from the insurgents. Ghazni is on the main road between Kabul and Kandahar province. "Afghan security forces, including special forces, are fighting the Taliban and trying to push them back." In central Bamyan province - usually comparatively free from conflict or Taliban presence - the Taliban took over Kuhmard district after security forces retreated, according to Humayoon Elkhani, the spokesperson for Bamyan province police. On Sunday, security forces, with the help of air strikes, repelled an assault by Taliban fighters on Taluqan, the provincial centre of a key northern province bordering Tajikistan.

Source: The Star July 12, 2021 14:15 UTC