The Afghan resistance movement and anti-Taliban forces are conducting military training in the Malimah area of Dara district, Panjshir province, on September 2.
Major clashes erupted Thursday evening around the Panjshir Valley in northern Afghanistan between Taliban fighters and an anti-Taliban group, according to a source in the group.
The Panjshir Valley, an inaccessible mountainous area north of Kabul, was the last major garrison against the Taliban regime and has a long history of fighting the insurgent group.
Sporadic fighting between the Taliban and the National Resistance Front (NRF) has continued for two weeks now. The Taliban have concentrated their forces in and around Panjshir province in recent weeks and said on Monday it had captured three districts in the valley.
Nightly clashes between the Taliban and the Afghan National Resistance Front (NRF) began Thursday evening and were intense, the NRF source said.
The Taliban have yet to take over all of Afghanistan. The province vowed to fight the
Taliban have yet to take over all of Afghanistan. The province vowed to fight
"They (Taliban) are using the last of their strength to push in, but clashes continue," the source added.
Earlier on Thursday, Fahim Dashti, a spokesman for the NRF, said in an audio message that the Taliban had lost 40 troops in their relentless efforts to enter Panjshir. Ali Nazary, another spokesman for the group, said on Thursday that the Taliban also lost some heavy equipment and the weapons were destroyed.
CNN has not independently verified Taliban casualties.
Separately, a Taliban source provided videos allegedly of the fighting and its aftermath. CNN could not immediately verify where or when the videos were shot.
On Wednesday, a Taliban leader called on Panjshiris to agree to an amnesty and avoid fighting, but acknowledged that negotiations so far have yielded no results. He said the situation "should be resolved peacefully", but did not directly respond to allegations of fresh fighting and casualties.
Anti-Italiban fighters patrol Anaba district in Panjshir province in Afghanistan on September 1.
Anti-Italiban fighters patrol Panjshir province in Anaba district in Afghanistan on September 1. from British Imperial troops to Soviet forces and the Taliban.
The rugged and inaccessible landscape played a role in its defensive success, giving local forces an advantage over invaders.
After the Soviet Union, which controlled Kabul and large swathes of the country in the 1980s, withdrew from Afghanistan in 1989, various factions of mujahedin or Muslim holy warriors split into groups, fighting for control from the country.
The Northern Alliance, now a major component of the NRF, was soon established. Led by Ahmad Shah Massoud, the group succeeded in keeping the Panjshir Valley untouched by the Taliban. Massoud led an offensive against the Taliban until he was assassinated by members of Al Qaeda two days before the September 11, 2001 attacks.
The Coalition, and generally the NRF, are now led. It was led by Massoud's son, Ahmad Massoud, who vowed to continue the war against the Taliban after they took over Afghanistan.
Leaders of the resistance against the army speak out
Leaders of the resistance against Italianiban speak out
Massoud and the NRF are currently rallying anti-Italian forces in the Panjshir valley, including local resistance forces as well as remnants of the old afghan army. 4,444 Taliban fugitives, including the former vice president of Afghanistan, Amrullah Saleh, have also sought refuge in the valley.
"The Taliban have not changed and they still dominate the country," Massoud told CNN in an interview on Wednesday. “We are fighting against the domination, intolerance and oppression exerted by a political force on the majority of the population which does not support them.
He added that he and the NRF were still trying to negotiate with the Taliban, but so far this dialogue "has not resulted in anything tangible." The talks took place in the town of Charika, the capital of neighboring Parwan province.
"Negotiations have their limits," he said, quoting a famous general in the Prussian army. "War is a continuation of politics, and if we are faced with aggression, we will be forced to fight and mount resistance to defend our land, our people and our values. Me."
0 Comments