According to a report by a foreign news agency, a senior lawmaker in Afghanistan said the Taliban captured the city of Ghazni, located just 150 kilometers from Kabul.
“The Taliban have taken control of several key areas of the city, including the governor’s office, the police headquarters and the prisons,” said Nasir Ahmad Faqiri, head of the provincial council.
He said fighting was continuing in many parts of the city, but most of the provincial capital was under the control of the Taliban.
A Taliban spokesman also confirmed the capture of the city, posting on social media.
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In less than a week, the Taliban have seized 10 provincial capitals and are now looking at Mazar-e-Sharif, the largest city in the north, traditionally considered an anti-Taliban stronghold.
Fighting is also raging in the pro-Taliban cities of Kandahar and Lashkar Gah in the south and Herat in the west.
Late at night, the Taliban claimed control of a fortified prison in Kandahar, saying that “it has been completely conquered after a long siege and hundreds of prisoners have been released and taken to safety.”
Previously, the Afghan Taliban captured Faizabad, the capital of Badakhshan.