Editor in Chief: Moh. Reza Huwaida Friday, March 29th, 2024

Trapped Forces Face Death, 5 Faryab Districts May Fall: PC

Trapped Forces Face Death,  5 Faryab Districts May Fall: PC

MAIMANA - Public representatives in northern Faryab province on Sunday said some 200 security men and uprising forces faced death after being besieged by the Taliban in Kohistan district.
The Taliban overran a neighborhood in Kohistan district on Saturday night, trapping about 200 security and uprising forces in the district centre.
Faryab police spokesman Abdul Karim Yourish said hundreds of militants attacked the area late on Saturday night. Security forces and public uprising group members retreated to Khairabad village.
He said the security personnel were trying to send reinforcements to Kohistan to reclaim the neighbourhood. Four security officials suffered causalities during the heavy clashes, he added.
A public uprising group commander, Mohammad Nasir, said all areas of the district barring Khairabad and Yak Qala villages had fallen into the hands of the militants.
He warned the lives of about 200 security personnel and uprising group members were under threat if the government did not take urgent measures for rescuing them.
The public representatives asked the central government to airlift the trapped forces otherwise they would get killed.
Mohammad Sami Khairkhwa, the provincial council head, told Pajhwok Afghan News losing Lawlash area of Kohistan district centre to the Taliban was worrisome, claiming the area collapsed due to negligence of the central government.
He warned about 200 security personnel and uprising group members trapped in a fortress in Khairabad village would be wasted if the government did not take urgent measures for rescuing and airlifting them until the end of the day.
He accused the central government of being indifferent to Faryab and currently five other districts---Ghormach, Khawaj Sabzposh, Shirin Tagab, Dawlatabad, Balchiragh---were also under threat of falling into the hands of insurgents, barring district centres’ buildings.
The public representative believed some circles inside and outside the system had a hand in insecurity in Faryab: “The enemies of the people and especially opponents of the newly-established High Council of Coalition for Salvation of Afghanistan are attempting to destabilize the territory under the influence of the alliance. However, they won’t succeed.”
Recently, acting foreign minister and JIA CEO Salahuddin Rabbani, JIA’s senior member Atta Mohammad Noor, first deputy Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Mohammad Mohaqiq, who is leader of the Hezb-i-Wahdat Mardum, after meeting 1st VP Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum in Ankara city of Turkey, formed a new political alliance named “High Council of Coalition for Salvation of Afghanistan”.
An Afghan National Police (ANP) service member, who has been besieged in Kohistan, said the Taliban had set 1pm on Sunday as a deadline for them to surrender, otherwise the insurgents would attack them and would kill them after capturing them alive.
Abdul Kareem Yourish, Faryab police spokesman, confirmed security personnel and public uprising forces had taken refuge in a fortified fortress in Khairabad village. He said air support from northern zone and central government was on the way and soon the Taliban would be crushed and eliminated in Kohistan.
He also confirmed the trapped security forces had been sent a message by insurgents to surrender, but the security personnel refused to do so and promised to fight and defend until death.
Lawlash area fell to insurgents as a result of coordinated attacks last night, leaving 200 security personnel trapped in Khairabad village. (Pajhwok)