The major northern Afghan city of Kunduz fell to the Taliban yesterday, in one of the biggest defeats for the Afghan military in years. Afghan officials say they aim to quickly retake the city militarily, and are already fighting the Taliban to that end.
Reports at this point are that they are facing serious resistance from the Taliban forces who captured the city, and that’s likely in part because the Taliban captured the city’s prison and freed hundreds of allies during the initial takeover.
The US is trying to help turn the tide back in favor of the government, launching an airstrike against Kunduz not long after the city fell to the Taliban. The US would only say it was meant to “eliminate a threat to the force.”
The loss of Kunduz was a huge blow to the Afghan military, as it was a city the Taliban didn’t even control before the 2001 US invasion, rather being a central city of the Northern Alliance, which dominates the current government. Taliban forces, far from focusing simply on defending the newly captured city, are said to be advancing on the airport on the outskirts, suggesting their latest offensive is not over.