KABUL, Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. Taliban insurgents have fought their way into the centre of a regional capital in Afghanistan in the worst breach of a major city in nearly 14 years of war.
The hard-line militants are said to have advanced close to the governor’s compound in Kunduz, after launching a three-pronged dawn attack.
A witness said the Taliban have raised a flag over the city’s main square, while a police official confirmed the raiders had captured more than half the city.
During fierce clashes, the gunmen briefly seized a hospital, apparently looking for wounded government fighters.
They have also occupied a number of other government buildings.
Reinforcements are being sent to the northern provincial capital in a bid to prevent the city falling completely into Taliban hands.
The assault was the second time this year Taliban fighters have besieged Kunduz.
Afghan military helicopters have fired rockets at the militants, while artillery and gunfire could be heard in the city centre from shortly after daybreak.
A spokesman for Kunduz police Sayed Sarwar said: “Right now heavy fighting is ongoing in Khanabad, Chardara and at Imam Saheb, the main entrances to the city.
“We have enough forces and will drive them out soon.”
He claimed 20 insurgents had been killed and three Afghan police wounded in the fighting.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Majahid urged Kunduz residents to stay indoors.
“The mujahideen are trying to avoid any harm to Kunduz residents,” he said on Twitter.
“Residents have to be assured they will not face any problem from our side.”
A hospital official confirmed Taliban fighters had entered the building for a short time.
“They just visited our rooms. They didn’t harm anybody and didn’t damage anything. They left soon after,” he said.
The attack comes as the Taliban, driven from power by a 2001 US-backed military intervention, sought to gain territory after the end of NATO’s combat mission last year.
A scaled-down NATO mission now mostly trains and advises Afghan forces, although US drones still target militant leaders and an American counter-terrorist force continues to operate in the country.
Credit: Sky News
