Afghanistan lost control of Jowzjan province. Its capital was captured by the Taliban

Fighters of the terrorist movement “Taliban” captured the city of Shibargan – the capital of the province of Jowzjan, located in northern Afghanistan. About this how transfers local agency Pajwork, said provincial deputy governor Abdul Qadir Malia.

According to the head of the province, Babur Eshchi, the militants captured the whole of Shibargan, except for the military base, around which the fighting is still ongoing. According to the agency, the head of the Jowzjan prison was killed during the fighting.

Earlier, the militants captured the city of Zaranj, the capital of Nimruz province, and later killed the head of the press center of the Afghan government and the former deputy press secretary of the country’s president, Davu Khan Minapalu. Representatives of the movement took responsibility for what happened. A Taliban spokesman said Minapal “was punished for his actions.”

A few days before the assassination of Dawa Minapala, the Taliban announced that they were preparing attacks on top state officials in response to a series of airstrikes against their formations.

As a reminder, on May 1, the withdrawal of the international coalition troops from Afghanistan officially began. It was planned to last until September. US President Joe Biden said that the US military has completed all the tasks assigned to them.

Already in May, simultaneously with the start of the withdrawal of coalition troops from Afghanistan, the Taliban fighters launched an offensive along a wide front. By the end of July, the Taliban had taken control of more than 160 of the country’s nearly 400 districts, as well as several border crossings and sections of important highways. The militants said they control about 90 percent of Afghanistan’s border and 85 percent of the country.

The Taliban offensive is accompanied by a humanitarian crisis. In the city of Lashkargah, the capital of Helmand province, shops burned down in fierce battles lasting a week. The local population was left without essential goods.

According to the United Nations, in the first six months of 2021 in Afghanistan perished 1659 civilians. 3,524 people were injured.