Heavy fighting is reported to be continuing in several locations throughout Afghanistan. Yesterday, the Taliban was reported to have captured its first provincial capital, the city of Zaranj in southern Nimroz province. “Taliban have the control of Zaranj city,” Rohgul Khairzad, the deputy governor of Nimroz province, told NBC News in a Facebook message, declaring that it fell around 4 p.m. local time. Khairzad also said that she “encourage[s] the residents of Nimroz to try to stay indoors until we see what the Taliban are planning to do.”
This morning, TOLOnews reported that heavy fighting has been going on in the city of Sheberghan, the capital of northern Jawzjan province since the Taliban entered the city two days ago, and it remains contested. Afghan security forces have apparently been joined by a militia force loyal to former Vice President Abdul Rashid Dostum. Dostum’s son Yar Mohammad Dostum is leading the public uprising forces in their fight against the Taliban in Sheberghan.
