Taliban fighters enter northern Afghan
city of Kunduz
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[October 03, 2016]
KUNDUZ, Afghanistan (Reuters) -
Taliban fighters entered the northern Afghan city of Kunduz on Monday,
almost exactly a year after they briefly seized it in their biggest
success of the 15-year war, while heavy fighting in the south
underscored the country's deteriorating security.
Sheer Ali Kamawal, commander of the 808 Tandar police zone in Kunduz,
said the attack began at around midnight (3.30 p.m. ET Sunday) and
fighting was going on in and around the city. Some Taliban fighters had
entrenched themselves in homes.
The fighters appear to have slipped through a defensive security line
set up around Kunduz, entering the city itself from four directions
before clashes broke out, witnesses in the city said.
In Kabul, Brigadier General Charles Cleveland, spokesman for
Afghanistan's NATO-led force, said it was ready to provide support if
needed.
"At this point, we are not observing evidence via our internal means to
support the reports that Kunduz is under significant attack," he said in
an emailed statement.
With fighting intensifying across the country, the attack on Kunduz, a
day before a major donor conference in Brussels, underlined
Afghanistan's precarious security situation and the Taliban's ability to
strike against important targets.
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Government forces, fighting with limited NATO-force support following
the end of the main international combat mission in 2014, are estimated
to have control over at most two-thirds of the country.
In Kunduz, Police spokesman Mahfozullah Akbari said security forces were
preparing to drive out the fighters, who had infiltrated the Khak Kani
area in the city's southwest.
"The Taliban are inside some civilian houses and we have to carry out
operations very carefully," he said.
Military helicopters flew overhead and gunfire could be heard in Kunduz,
where a year ago to the day, Afghan troops backed by U.S. air strikes
and special forces were battling to drive out Taliban who had raised
their flag in the city center.
Residents piled into cars and trailers to escape the city center and
shops were shut. Several checkpoints were burned out but there was
little actual fighting as security forces held back from confrontation
in the city center.
However, witnesses saw Taliban fighters armed with AK-47 assault rifles,
machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades walking around the deserted
streets of the city, entering homes and taking up position on rooftops.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said in his official Twitter
account that four government checkpoints in Kunduz had been captured and
some soldiers had been killed.
"A massive operation started on Kunduz capital from four directions
early this morning," he said.
The renewed attack on Kunduz forced officials to cancel a ceremony
planned for Monday to commemorate the first anniversary of a U.S. air
strike that destroyed a hospital run by the international charity
Médecins Sans Frontières during the fighting.
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Afghan policemen keep watch in the downtown of Kunduz city,
Afghanistan October 3, 2016.REUTERS/Nasir Wakif
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ATTACKS ACROSS AFGHANISTAN
The assault on Kunduz came as the Taliban have stepped up attacks in
different parts of Afghanistan, including the southern province of
Helmand, where they have been threatening the provincial capital of
Lashkar Gah.
On Monday, Taliban fighters, positioned just across the Helmand
river from the center of Lashkar Gah, also took control of Nawa
district to the south, killing a district police chief, officials
said.
Heavy fighting has also continued along the main road to Tarin Kot,
the provincial capital of Uruzgan, also in the south, where a
Taliban raid on Sept. 8 sparked fears of another collapse like that
in Kunduz last year.
The raid on Tarin Kot was beaten back but alarmed security officials
because the militants were able to enter the city without
significant resistance after police abandoned dozens of checkpoints.
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 in 2014.
Although the insurgents abandoned Kunduz after a few days, the
capture of a provincial capital underlined their growing strength
and exposed flaws in Afghan security forces and the city has
remained effectively besieged ever since.
"Every day the militants come to the city and are pushed back by
security forces," said Amruddin Wali, a member of the provincial
council as he stood with security forces on the edges of the city.
"There is killing and fighting every day."
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Efforts at reviving peace talks with the Taliban have failed to
produce results but Afghanistan's international partners are
expected to approve maintaining billions of dollars in funding for
the government over the next four years at a two-day meeting in
Brussels this week.
(Reporting by Afghanistan bureau; Writing by James Mackenzie;
Editing by Paul Tait, Robert Birsel)
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