Taliban make new gains in Afghanistan, putting Kabul in crisis

KABUL — The Taliban captured the capital of strategic Samangan province on Monday after a prominent pro-government commander switched sides, nearly completing their sweep of northern Afghanistan and escalating a political crisis in Kabul.

The bloodless takeover of Aibak, which followed the capture of four other neighboring provincial capitals in the past three days, allowed the Taliban forces to unite to attack the biggest prize: the main metropolis of the northern Afghanistan, Mazar-e-Sharif. Taliban forces attacked the now isolated city of half a million people on Monday from different directions, but have so far failed to make significant inroads. Separately, the insurgents fought government forces inside the main town of Herat in western Afghanistan.

The spate of battlefield losses are fueling calls for President Ashraf Ghani – who has relied on a small circle of advisers and frequently changed ministers and key military commanders – to change the way he rules or step down. Kabul could fall into Taliban hands within weeks unless all political forces opposed to the insurgency unite behind a common war plan, a senior government official has warned.

In the months following President Biden’s April announcement of his decision to withdraw all U.S. troops from Afghanistan, the Taliban launched a blitz across the country. This despite their commitment to seek a peaceful settlement in the February 2020 Doha deal with the Trump administration.

The US-funded and trained Afghan security forces have often melted away, and the main resistance to the Taliban has come from commando units, the National Directorate of the Security Intelligence Agency, and militias affiliated with the warlords. mujahedin.