Taliban claims ‘complete capture’ of Afghanistan’s Panjshir

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The group takes control of the last Afghan province held by resistance forces, says its spokesman, but opposition forces say the fight will continue. Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid announced this in a news conference on Monday. He called upon the international community to help Taliban rebuilt Afghanistan. He told that North Alliance leader Abdullah Saleh has escaped to Tajikistan but he made it clear Afghanistan is their own country and they are free to come. back. Regarding a question about announcement, he said the govt shall be announced soon however he did not have full details. To a question about crossing points he said the are efforts to check pilferage of criminals to the neighboring countries.

The Taliban has taken complete control of Panjshir province, the last area in Afghanistan held by resistance forces, the group’s spokesman said on Monday, as it cemented its control of the country three weeks after taking over Kabul.

“With this victory, our country is completely taken out of the quagmire of war,” chief spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said.

Pictures on social media on Monday showed Taliban members standing in front of the gate of the Panjshir provincial governor’s compound.

The National Resistance Front (NRF), the anti-Taliban forces in Panjshir Valley, pledged to carry on fighting. The NRF said it was present in “strategic positions” across the valley, adding “the struggle against the Taliban and their partners will continue”.

Earlier on Monday, the NRF acknowledged suffering considerable battlefield losses and called for a ceasefire, as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken flew to Qatar to try and handle the chaotic aftermath of the US withdrawal from Afghanistan.

The NRF proposed in a statement “that the Taliban stop its military operations in Panjshir … and withdraw its forces”.