According to reporting from American Military News, eight capitals have been seized over the course of five days, and more territories may be falling into the hands of the Taliban in the coming days.
Timeline
Here is a timeline of recent events:
- Tuesday, August 10th, 2021 – Taliban forces have seized the provincial capitals of Farah, (the capital of Afghanistan’s Farah province), and Pul-e-Khumri, (the capital of Baghlan province).
- Monday, August 9th, 2021 – Taliban fighters took control of the city of Aybak, Afghanistan, which is the provincial capital of the Samangan province.
- Sunday, August 8th, 2021 – The Taliban captured the provincial capitals Kunduz, Sar-i-Pul, Taliqan.
- Saturday, August 7th, 2021 – The Taliban announced that they had taken control of the city of Sheberghan.
- Friday, August 6th, 2021 – The Taliban seized the city of Zaranj.
Response
According to reporting from American Military News, “The U.S. has reportedly deployed B-52 Stratofortress bombers and AC-130 Spectre gunships to Afghanistan in a bid to halt the Taliban advances.”
The bombers have flown into Afghanistan from an airbase located in Qatar, and are hitting targets in the areas of Kandahar, Herat, and Lashkar Gah.
Sources within the Department of Defense have revealed that the U.S. intends to continue with their airstrikes after August 31st, the date that Joe Biden had set for the end of combat operations within Afghanistan.
Though the U.S. seems to be concerned with slowing the Taliban’s efforts, it appears that the government of Afghanistan is putting up little resistance to the terrorist group’s takeover of the country.
According to Nazir Ahamad, a cellphone seller in Aybak, “the Taliban entered without a gunshot.”
Raaz Mohammad Mowahid, a member of the Samangan provincial council, also noted that Afghanistan’s government forces offered little resistance before retreating to a mountain to the south.
“Aybak fell to the Taliban, and all officials and security forces retreated,” a Samangan Police dispatcher told the New York Times. “Now I am hiding in the city.”
The United States Embassy in Kabul is now urging Americans to leave Afghanistan immediately, using whatever commercial flight options are available to them at the moment.
“Given the security conditions and reduced staffing, the Embassy’s ability to assist U.S. citizens in Afghanistan is extremely limited even within Kabul,” the Kabul embassy said in a travel advisory released on Saturday, August 7th.
