KUNDUZ: Talebanforces attacked the northern Afghan city of Kunduz yesterday, setting off hoursof gun battles, even as US negotiators move closer to finalizing a deal withthe insurgents for the withdrawal of American troops from the country. Heavyfighting has gone on in Kunduz since the early hours of the morning afterTaleban fighters attacked from several directions, forcing Afghan forces torush in reinforcements to prevent the insurgents from gaining control of thecity.
Electricity andmost telephone services were cut, and residents were sheltering in theirhouses, making it difficult to gain a complete picture of the fighting. Atleast three civilians were killed and 41 wounded were taken to hospitals, saidEhsanullah Fazli, head of the public health department in Kunduz city.
"The city iscompletely empty, shops are locked, people aren't moving, and light and heavyweapons can be heard in several parts of the city," said local residentKhaluddin, who like many Afghans goes by a single name. Government officials inKunduz and Kabul said the Taleban were seeking shelter inside homes and some ofthe fighters had entered the main hospital in the city. The interior ministrysaid at least 36 Taleban insurgents were killed in ground and air operations inthree areas of Kunduz city and clearance operations were underway.
An airstrike inZakhil area killed 20 Taleban including two commanders, Afghan securityofficials said. Taleban spokesmen were not immediately available to confirm thecasualty figures. "Security forces are repelling the Taleban attack onsome parts of Kunduz city. Their top priority is to protect thecivilians," said Sediq Sediqqi, a spokesman for the Afghan PresidentAshraf Ghani. "As always the Taleban have taken positions in civilianareas," he said in a tweet.
Taleban spokesmanZabihullah Mujahid said in a tweet that Afghan forces were under heavy pressurein different parts of the city. A Reuters reporter in Kunduz earlier saidsmall-arms and heavy-weapons fire could be heard in several residential areas."The Afghan security forces are in control of the situation. Our securityforces can't always control where the enemy attack, but we can control whateffect they have," said Massoud Andarabi, the interior minister in Kabul.
Troop withdrawal
The fighting inKunduz, which the Taleban came close to capturing twice in recent years, cameas expectations have grown that US and Taleban negotiators in Doha were closeto securing an agreement that would see a timetable for the withdrawal ofthousands of US troops. Zalmay Khalilzad, the Afghan-born US diplomat leadingthe talks for Washington, is expected in Kabul in the coming days to outlinethe terms of a settlement to the Afghan president ahead of meetings with NATOpartners.
Taleban officialssaid talks had resumed yesterday and could continue until Sunday. A US-Talebanaccord would not in itself end the fighting in Afghanistan, but it would openthe way for talks between the Taleban and the government in Kabul for a widerpeace agreement. US President Donald Trump said on Friday the United States hadhad good negotiations going on with the Taleban but had not yet reached a dealwith them on US troops withdrawing from Afghanistan.
Sources in theTaleban said Trump's statement that the United States will continue to maintaina force in Afghanistan even after a deal was reached was unacceptable to themas they are demanding a complete pull-out of foreign forces. About 20,000foreign troops, most of them American, are now in Afghanistan as part of aUS-led NATO mission to train, assist and advise Afghan forces. Some US forcescarry out counter-terrorism operations. Despite peace talks, fighting betweenthe Taleban and Afghan forces, who are backed by US air power, has notsubsided.
Many Afghansworry that the withdrawal of foreign troops will leave Afghan forces vulnerableand further embolden the Taleban, who already control more territory than theyhave since 2001. The war has ground to a stalemate, with casualties risingamong civilians as well as combatants. More than 1,500 civilians were killed orinjured last month, according to a report by the United Nations. An Americanservice member was killed in combat operations in Afghanistan on Thursday, theUS military said, the third to be killed here in the past eight days. - Reuters