Over 570 Taliban militants killed as Afghan and US forces launch counterstrikes
More than 200 Taliban terrorists have been killed in the city of Shebergan, according to emerging reports.
More than 570 Taliban militants were killed as Afghan forces, supported by the US air force, launched an offensive across Afghanistan on Saturday, according to the country’s Ministry of Defence.
The Taliban have invaded and occupied a swathe of the country ahead of the formal exit of US troops, and the US-Afghan retaliatory strikes were intended to take back the initiative.
“Over 200 terrorists were killed in Shebergan City after air force targeted their gathering and hideouts. A large number of their weapons and ammunition and more than 100s of their vehicles were destroyed as a result of the airstrikes,” ANI quoted an Afghan defence ministry official as saying.
572 #Taliban terrorists were killed & 309 others wounded as a result of #ANDSF operations in Nangarhar,Laghman,Ghazni,Paktia,Paktika, Kandahar,Uruzgan,Herat,Farah, Jowzjan,Sar-e Pol,Faryab,Helmand, Nimruz, Takhar, Kunduz, Badakhshan & Kapisa provinces during the last 24 hours. pic.twitter.com/vvhLjscd3w
— Ministry of Defense, Afghanistan (@MoDAfghanistan) August 8, 2021
The Taliban hideout in Shebergan was targeted by a B-52 bomber on Saturday night (August 7). “The terrorists have suffered heavy casualties as a result of US Air Force airstrike,” tweeted Fahadh Aman, a ministry official.
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The ministry said at least 45 Taliban militants, including three Pakistanis affiliated to Al-Qaeda, were killed in airstrikes on the outskirts of Lashkar Gah in Helmand province on Saturday night. Mawlavi Hijrat, the head of Taliban for Helmand, was killed in the airstrikes.
Mawlavi Hijrat”head of #Taliban terrorists offensive attacks for #Helmand, was killed in #airstrikes conducted by #AAF at the outskirts of Lashkargah city, Helmand provincial center, last night. pic.twitter.com/ImNdFI0csP
— Ministry of Defense, Afghanistan (@MoDAfghanistan) August 8, 2021
In another airstrike at Dand, Zherai districts and the outskirts of Kandahar, at least 47 militants were killed and 26 wounded, the ministry claimed.
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On Friday, the Afghan forces claimed to have killed 112 militants, including 30 Pakistanis, affiliated with Al-Qaeda, on the outskirts of Lashkar Gah.
At a United Nations Security Council meeting on Afghanistan on Friday, member states expressed concern about the deteriorating situation in the country and called for a political settlement.
Afghanistan’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ghulam M Isaczai said the Taliban are receiving assistance from foreign fighters of transnational terrorist networks while committing “barbaric” acts in the war-torn country.
Meanwhile, support for the Afghan government and its forces is growing among citizens. Religious scholars in Nangarhar province donated blood to wounded of Afghan National Defense and Security Forces and expressed support for them.
The US has also pledged more airstrikes to counter the Taliban.
