Violence continues in Afghanistan's Lashkargah amid US military withdrawal

Clashes continued in critical parts of Lashkargah city, the capital of Helmand province, as the situation in Afghanistan deteriorated due to an uptick in Taliban offensives. On Sunday, skirmishes were reported in Lashkargah city's District 1 near the police headquarters and the provincial governor's office, according to Tolo News. Many portions of the city have fallen to the Taliban in recent weeks. Meanwhile, Helmand's Members of Parliament (MPs) have stated that if the city does not receive support, it will be out of the government's control. 

Ghulam Wali Afghan, a Helmand MP, was quoted by Tolo News as saying, "the fighting has reached District 1 and is 100 meters or 200 meters away from the provincial governor's compound. Fighting is underway to capture the base in the province and the people are concerned." Another Helmand MP Karim Atal said, "clashes are underway near the Helmand governor's compound, the police headquarters and the NDS office. They will fall if attention is not paid to them," 

The Taliban has taken control of 70 districts and Spin Boldak

With the complete withdrawal of foreign soldiers only a few weeks away, Afghanistan has seen an increase in violence in recent weeks as the Taliban have escalated their onslaught against civilians and Afghan security personnel. According to Tolo News, the Taliban took control of 70 districts, as well as the border town of Spin Boldak, in July. The government claimed that 11 districts had been retaken from the Taliban in July, but five of these have since fallen back to the Taliban, Yaftal in Badakhshan, Chakhansur in Nimroz, Malistan in Ghazni, Garmsir in Helmand, and Guzara in Herat.

313 civilians and 239 security force members were injured in security incidents and Taliban strikes in just a month of July. During this time, 700 citizens and 216 members of the security forces were injured, according to the data. The Taliban has suffered a significant number of casualties throughout this time.

The US will completely withdraw the place by September

Then-US President Donald Trump and allies agreed in February 2020 to work out a deal with the Taliban over the withdrawal of international combat forces. President Joe Biden said earlier this year that the withdrawal will take place by September.

(Inputs from ANI)