Contact Admin. Heavy clashes continued until late Friday morning between the insurgent group and government security forces. The government sent in Afghan special forces, which helped push the Taliban back to the outskirts of the city according to General Farid Mashal, the provincial police chief.
However, he said that the Taliban were taking shelter in civilian areas, making the job of the security forces difficult. Residents said fighting continued in parts of the city, particularly in the second district. Forces responded with close-air support this morning in Ghazni. Afghan forces held their ground and maintain control of all govt. Another failed attempt by Taliban to seize terrain, while creating strategically inconsequential headlines.
And the Afghan military tweeted that they have inflicted heavy casualties on the Taliban in Ghazni and the district center is in their control. The Kabul-Kandahar highway that passes through Ghazni city was closed. The Taliban claimed they had closed the highway near Maidan Wardak and Ghazni, and set up checkpoints in several other places.
Defense Ministry spokesman Mohammad Radmanish told the Associated Press that the army was helping the local police and that the security forces were in control of the city. AP also reported that nine security forces personnel wounded in the attacks were being treated at a local hospital. Taliban militants have launched an attack on an Afghan provincial capital and heavy fighting is under way as security forces try to beat them back pic.
In a statement sent to media, the Taliban said they launched about a dozen broad-ranged operations in the center of Ghazni province Thursday night and claimed to have captured a large amount of weapons and ammunition. They also claimed to have killed a high number of security forces personnel but there is no independent confirmation of those claims yet. Ghazni city is part of the larger Ghazni province, which has faced increased insecurity in recent months.
