Afghan forces appeared to have lost control of the centre of Sangin in Helmand province, according to reports on Wednesday night.
Advertisement
“US forces conducted two strikes in Sangin on December 23 against threats to the force”, a spokesman for the military coalition said.
The move was reportedly to bolster Afghan forces scrambling to beat back Taliban fighters who had seized large amounts of the opium-rich district, following an initial British deployment to the area more than a year ago.
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) – The Afghan military has rushed reinforcements to a southern district threatened for days with takeover by the Taliban, the country’s defense minister said Wednesday as he appealed for stepped-up North Atlantic Treaty Organisation assistance and military support.
However, Helmand’s deputy governor Mohammad Jan Rasulyar said all lines of communication with Sangin had been cut and there was no immediate information available on the situation there.
Insurgents have been fighting for control of Sangin for nearly a month, though the battle intensified a week ago as government reinforcements failed to arrive and Afghan security forces were pinned down inside an army base.
Although the Taliban already hold three districts in Helmand, Sangin’s status resonates because of the hundreds of British and US soldiers and marines killed and wounded while fighting in the district.
Place you AD here for just N500 a day.
The dramatic development came after United Kingdom forces returned to Helmand for the first time since troops pulled out of the country in October past year.
However government officials have denied the claim and said they have pushed back Taliban insurgents seeking to re-establish their hard-line Islamist regime after being toppled by U.S.-led military intervention in 2001.
Sangin is an important prize for the Taliban.
“An hour later we recaptured that building and now we have it”, claimed Akhtar Muhammad, a police commander in Sangin district.
United Kingdom advisers were flown in over the weekend to help train struggling Afghan forces failing to halt Taliban advances across the province.
American special forces were also reported to be in the area.
But it is not the only province where the Taliban have made gains.
The attack was the deadliest on USA forces in Afghanistan this year.
Pakistan hosted a first round of negotiations in July but the talks stalled when the Taliban belatedly confirmed the death of longtime leader Mullah Omar.
Advertisement
The fight for Sangin has been particularly ferocious, with officials saying that only the army base was still in government hands until Tuesday.
