The Taliban have captured the city of Zaranj under the control of the Afghan government.
Taliban fighters
The Taliban have captured the city of Zaranj in Nimruz province of Afghanistan. In this way, Zaranj has become the first provincial capital, which the Taliban has taken under its control from the Afghan government. The Taliban’s aggressive actions have also increased in recent days. The Taliban are now looking to return to power after being overthrown by US-led forces in 2001. Its intention is to impose strict Islamic law in Afghanistan. This is the reason why it has intensified its campaign.
The Taliban have captured dozens of districts and border crossings in recent months. In addition, there has been pressure to annex several provincial capitals, including Herat in the west and Kandahar in the south. Zaranj is the first provincial capital to be captured by the Taliban since the US reached an agreement for a military withdrawal with the Taliban in February 2020. The last time the Taliban captured a provincial capital was in 2016. At that time, Kunduz was ruled by the Taliban for some time.
Taliban fighters celebrating
A spokesman for the Nimroj police told Reuters news agency on condition of anonymity that the Taliban have been able to capture the city due to the Taliban government’s lack of deployment of troops. Taliban sources said the group’s fighters were celebrating. The passing of the city of Zaranj into the hands of the Taliban has boosted the confidence of the fighters. A Taliban commander told Reuters that the city is strategically important, as it borders Iran. He said that this is only the beginning, in the coming times many states of Afghanistan will be in our hands.
Zaranj is one of the famous historical cities
Zaranj is a city located in the remotest part of the country, with a population of 63,000. As a border town, Zaranj is home to a large number of legal and illegal trades. Capturing Nimruz would give the Taliban another source of income through customs duties. Nimruz province shares borders with Iran and Pakistan and Zaranj is considered one of the famous historical cities of the war-torn country. The Helmand River, one of the biggest rivers in Afghanistan, also runs through the city to Iran. Earlier, men, women and children were seen running towards the Iran border after the Taliban took over.
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