Clashes continue in Ghazni after Taliban storms city
KABUL: Fighting continued around Ghazni in central Afghanistan on Saturday, a day after Taliban fighters stormed the city in a stark show of force in which at least 25 police and one journalist were killed.
Many telecoms masts were destroyed during heavy fighting on Friday, making it difficult to establish contact with the city, and there were conflicting accounts from government and Taliban spokesmen.
The attack on Ghazni, a strategically important centre straddling the main highway between Kabul and the south, was the most serious blow struck by the Taliban since they nearly overran the western city of Farah in May. They have failed to take any provincial centre since they briefly seized Kunduz in 2015, although they control many rural areas.
Defence ministry officials said Ghazni was under complete control of the security forces. But at the same time, they said clearance operations were continuing and additional troops were being sent to boost the city’s defence.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the insurgents held a number of strategic locations in the city and had captured a large quantity of weapons and equipment, as well as taking more than 100 prisoners among the security forces.
‘‘We are in talks in various areas with the rest of the enemy forces to surrender instead of putting their lives in danger,’’ he said in a statement.
He posted on social media that the group had captured Ghazni’s main prison and freed many inmates, but Afghan officials could not immediately confirm or reject the statement.
One security official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said both sides were fighting to control commercial centres and arterial roads around the city.
Friday’s attack came as a shock after hopes had grown of a possible start to peace talks. — Reuters