Taliban claim complete control of Panjshir province

KABUL: Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid claimed early Monday the final stronghold of the resistance, Panjshir Valley, has, too, fallen to the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, ARY News reported.

“Panjshir, the last stronghold of the mercenary enemy, was completely conquered,” a tweet by the “official spokesman of Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan” said in a tweet earlier today.

Some of the rebels were killed while some fled, he said in an official statement shared on social media.

The war is over and there will be no vengeance from the people of Panjshir who are our brothers, the statement said.

It said together everyone will all work towards the prosperity of Afghanistan.

The Taliban have taken complete control of Panjshir province, the last area in Afghanistan being held by resistance forces, the group’s spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, said on Monday.

According to Reuters, pictures on social media showed Taliban members standing in front of the gate of the Panjshir provincial governor’s compound.

There was no immediate word from Ahmad Massoud, the leader of the opposition group resisting Taliban forces.

PANJSHIR LEADER SAYS READY TO TALK WITH TALIBAN

Earlier yesterday, the leader of the Afghan opposition group resisting Taliban forces in the Panjshir valley north of Kabul said on Sunday he welcomed proposals from religious scholars for a negotiated settlement to end the fighting.

Ahmad Massoud, head of the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan (NRFA), made the announcement on the group’s Facebook page. Earlier, Taliban forces said they had fought their way into the provincial capital of Panjshir after securing the surrounding districts.

Taliban took control of the rest of Afghanistan three weeks ago, taking power in Kabul on August 15 after the Western-backed government collapsed and President Ashraf Ghani fled the country.