Taliban Captures Almost Half of Afghanistan
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Taliban seizes almost half of all 34 Afghan capitals, with northern Afghanistan's Mazar-i-Sharif most recently taken. Afghan forces are driven out with little resistance, Afghan citizens flee in fear.
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Militants in Balkh Province in July 2021 (The New York Times).
Taliban captures the last major city in northern Afghanistan, Mazar-i-Sharif with little resistance from the Afghan forces - bringing the group closer to annexing Kabul.
This leaves the entire northern region under the Taliban's control.
Counting from August 6, the number of captured capitals amounts to at least 16 - almost half of the 34 Afghan capitals across the country.
With some brief, sporadic clashes between the Taliban and Afghan forces, the Taliban have managed to sink their teeth into Mazar-i-Sharif, located in Balkh province, as Afghan forces escape towards the border.
“Government forces and popular uprisings all left the city,” said Hashim Ahmadzai, a pro-government militia commander. “The Taliban seized government and military buildings. There was no resistance.”
Afghan citizens, afraid of the terror group, refuged to Kabul as thousands of British and US troops are injected into the area to evacuate their citizens, worried that Kabul could soon be next.
Furthermore, President Ashraf Ghani held emergency talks with international leaders; however, he did not display any sign of catering to the Taliban's demand to step down from the presidency.
Ghani stressed "preventing further instability, violence, and displacement of my people."
On another note, Qatar, hosting peace talks between both the Afghan government and the Taliban, urged the latter to a ceasefire during a meeting with their representatives on Saturday.
The hospitals could not keep up
In health care facilities supported by the International Committee of the Red Cross, hospitals were struggling to keep up with patients, as there were 17,000 admitted between July and the first week of August, filling and overwhelming the premises.
More refugee crises are on the horizon as the fighting escalates and continues after the United States announced its withdrawal from Afghanistan. Canada has recently announced its willingness to welcome 20,000 Afghan refugees, including women, reporters, and human rights activists, amid the crisis.
