Handed over to Afghan forces only last month in a high profile ceremony, the Helmand Province’s Camp Bastion is now under siege by Taliban fighters, with gunbattles reported throughout the day.
Taliban attacked the base overnight, and while Afghan commanders insisted that the site has yet to be penetrated, they confirmed that the battle for control of the site is still ongoing.
So far, the death toll is reported at 20 Taliban fighters killed, and five Afghan soldiers also slain. The Taliban claimed to have killed “hundreds” of Afghan soldiers in the attack.
The truth is likely to be somewhere in the middle, as the Afghan military often under-reports casualties in combat with the Taliban, and the Taliban often dramatically overstates the damage they’ve done in attacks.