Fighting in the city of Rashkar Gah, the capital of Helmand Province in southern Afghanistan, has intensified. Government forces tried to prevent the city from falling into the hands of the Taliban. At the same time, the United States and Britain accused the Taliban of massacres of civilians in Kandahar. On the other hand, the United Nations Call for civilians to be spared from the conflict between the government and the Taliban.
Agence France-Presse reported that after the Taliban attacked the city center and prison building, the fighting in Rashkar Gah intensified yesterday. A few hours before that, the government announced the deployment of hundreds of special forces in the city of Rashkar Gah.
The German news agency quoted officials and local residents in the Helmand province as saying that government forces controlled only two areas of the city, where major government facilities such as court buildings and police headquarters were located.
Local media reported yesterday that the Taliban controlled the radio and television building in the city of Lashkar Gah.
The Ministry of National Defense stated in a tweet today that government forces launched a night air strike on the outskirts of the city of Rashkar Gah, killing 20 Taliban members and wounding 12 others.
U.S. support
Residents of the city of Rashkar Gah, which has a population of 200,000, said that a U.S. B-52 bomber was involved in the fighting to support the government forces. Stronghold of the city.
Abdul Majid Konzad, a member of the Helmand Provincial Council, told the German news agency that conflicts and air strikes were causing casualties and suffering, and explained that the entire city of Rashkar Gah was closed and only the laboratory continued. jobs.
If the Taliban controls the city of Rashkar Gah, this will be the first capital city to fall into the hands of Taliban fighters since 2016. Helmand Province is the largest province in Afghanistan and is adjacent to the Pakistani border.
On the other hand, Al Jazeera reporters quoted a spokesperson of the Ministry of National Defense as saying that government forces managed to regain control of the Najrab area in Kabisa province, north of the capital Kabul. The Taliban did not comment on this news.
Accuse the Taliban
On the other hand, the US and British embassies in Afghanistan today accused the Taliban of killing civilians in the southern province of Kandahar, but the Taliban denied this statement. The embassies of the two countries stated in a joint statement that the Taliban had committed crimes against humanity in the Sabine district of Kandahar, but did not provide more details.
In the aforementioned statement, the two countries called for a full investigation of the incident and emphasized the need to stop the ongoing war in Afghanistan. The embassies of the two countries shouted to the Taliban, “If you can’t control your fighters now, you won’t be able to do anything after you take power.”
The Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission earlier stated that the Taliban killed 40 civilians and looted their money when they seized the Sabine district on July 14.
Sohail Shahin, a member of the Taliban negotiating team, told Reuters that the accusations made by the US and British embassies were baseless.
Taliban fighters took control of the strategically important Sabine area, an important commercial border crossing with Pakistan. Since then, fierce fighting has occurred as the Afghan government forces try to retake the area.
Afghan armed personnel stand guard at a checkpoint in the Pul-e Malan area of Guzara, Herat Province (European News Agency)United Nations
In this context, the United Nations today urged the warring parties in Afghanistan to take more measures to protect civilians and warned that unless the parties do so, the consequences will be “catastrophic.” The United Nations Assistance Mission stated in a series of tweets that the Taliban The attacks of the United States and government forces have caused the most damage to civilians.
On the other hand, Tirumurti, the Indian ambassador who is the rotating chairman of the UN Security Council this month, will hold an emergency meeting on Afghanistan. He added at a press conference in New York that the situation in Afghanistan has become a concern for all members of the Security Council. problem.
Afghanistan has been suffering from war since 2001, when the international military alliance led by Washington overthrew the Taliban regime on the grounds that the Taliban had ties to Al-Qaeda, which launched an attack in the United States on September 11 of the same year. At the same time, since the beginning of May, with the beginning of the final phase of the withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan, the level of violence in Afghanistan has been escalating.
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