The sudden fall of Kunduz on Monday was a major setback for the government of President Ashraf Ghani, which marked its first year in power on Tuesday, and raised questions over how ready Afghan forces were to tackle the Islamist insurgency alone.
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The U.S. said it had carried out an air strike on the city early on Tuesday.
Also in Kunduz, the global Committee of the Red Cross reported that two of its vehicles had been “taken out of its offices in the city”, but it did not say by who.
Tuesday’s counter-offensive is taking place as the Taliban is said to be closing in on the city’s airport after numerous security forces had fled.
The reports said that the Afghan forces have regained control over the Central Jail and the Provincial Police Headquarters which had fallen to the militants.
On Monday, Taliban fighters seized the provincial governor’s office in one of the group’s biggest territorial gains since being ousted by US-led forces 14 years ago.
The insurgents have had a heavy presence in Kunduz since launching their annual summer offensive with an assault on the city in April.
The militants called the seizure of Kunduz an “immense conquest” in a statement urging its fighters to respect the locals and which attempted to reassure Kunduz residents the Taliban had “no intention” of looting, violating their property or carrying out extrajudicial killings.
The medical charity Doctors Without Borders said it had treated more than 100 wounded people in Kunduz since the assault began, including 36 who were “in critical condition, with severe abdominal and head injuries”.
One of the released inmates told CNN, “We were hearing gunshots throughout the day, but it was 4:00 p.m. when the Kunduz prison guards left the compound”.
4) The Taliban has no intentions of retaliating against members of the security forces or the government.
The relative ease with which the militants took the city on their third attempt – in less than a day and seemingly without major losses – also bodes badly for the Afghan National Army, which has been fighting the Taliban without North Atlantic Treaty Organisation combat troops since the start of the year.
Afghanistan’s president is vowing to recapture the northern city of Kunduz, which was taken by Taliban gunmen yesterday.
Mullah Akhtar Mansour, the Taliban’s new leader, said the authorities should declare defeat.
The Afghan interior ministry’s confirmed “most of Kunduz city” is under Taliban control. All United Nations staff were evacuated on Monday.
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Pakistan must keep its promise to crackdown on insurgents operating out of terror sanctuaries in the country, Afghan Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah has demanded, hours after Taliban overran the strategic city of Kunduz. The Taliban announced over loudspeakers that civilians should leave the city as soon as possible, and that they expected the battle to last several days.
