Taliban says fighters heading to seize last major holdout

Taliban says fighters heading to seize last major holdout
# 22 August 2021 22:55 (UTC +04:00)

The Taliban said on Sunday that “hundreds” of its fighters were heading to the Panjshir Valley, one of the few parts of Afghanistan not yet controlled by the group, APA reports citing Al-Jazeera.

Ahmad Massoud, whose forces control the last major anti-Taliban holdout, told Reuters news agency that while he hoped to hold talks with the group, his forces were ready to fight if the Taliban tried to takeover Panjshir Valley.

Meanwhile, the Pentagon has said that it is formally seeking airlift help from commercial airlines to relocate evacuees from Afghanistan once they have gotten out of their country.

The British military on Sunday acknowledged at least seven deaths at the airport the previous day. Others may have been trampled, suffocated or suffered heart attacks as Taliban fighters fired into the air to try to drive back the crowds.

There were no major injuries on Sunday as gunmen beat back the crowds, according to witnesses, and Washington said it was now able to get large numbers of Americans into the airport.

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