Afghan Resistance Fighters Stand Firm Against Taliban In Panjshir

Anti-Taliban resistance fighters loyal to local leader Ahmad Massoud claimed they have full control of the steps to his Panjshir Valley stronghold following clashes with the Taliban on Thursday, more than two weeks after the Islamist militia swept through the captivity, Kabul. But the Taliban claimed they caused heavy casualties in the battle.

A spokesman for the National Resistance Front (NRF), made up of anti-Taliban militiamen and former Afghan security forces, said the movement had full control of all passes and entrances to the Panjshir Valley and had rejected the Taliban’s efforts to take Shotul district.

“The enemy made multiple attempts to enter Shotul from Jabul-Saraj, and failed each time,” he said, referring to a city in neighboring Parwan province.

Surrounded by towering snow-capped mountains, the rugged Panjshir Valley, which begins about 80 kilometers (50 miles) north of the capital Kabul, is a stronghold of resistance after the Taliban stormed Kabul on August 15. and took power.

But the Taliban also said they had caused heavy casualties in the NRF.

“We started operations after negotiations with the local armed group failed,” Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said on Thursday.

Since August 15, several thousand local militia fighters and remnants of the government armed forces have gathered in Panjshir under the leadership of Massoud, son of the Afghan resistance hero Ahmad Shah Massoud.

Efforts to negotiate an agreement appear to have failed, with each party blaming the other for the failure.

Anti-Taliban leader Massoud wants to speak but is ready to fight

( Jowharwith AFP and REUTERS)