Around 20 insurgents were killed in the attack in Kandahar province, by the Afghanistan government on Sunday.
A hideout used by Taliban terrorists is seen being destroyed in an airstrike by defense forces in a video released by the Afghanistan government on Twitter. Twenty terrorists were killed and wounded in the attack in the Zherai district of Kandhar province, it said.
At least 250 such insurgents have been killed while nearly 100 were wounded in clashes at several major cities over the past 24 hours, the government has said.
Khasha Zwan, a famous comedian of Kandahar, was taken out of his home by the Taliban and later they killed him.
#Taliban terrorist hideouts were targeted by #AAF in Zherai district of #Kandahar province yesterday. Tens of #terrorists were killed and wounded as a result of the #airstrike. pic.twitter.com/mM1uVyeXMu
Ministry of Defense, Afghanistan: 11 #Taliban terrorists were killed and another was wounded in operations conducted by #ANDSF with support from #AAF in Panjwae district & at the outskirts of #Kandahar provincial center, yesterday.
Also, 7 weapons and some amount of their weapons & amos were destroyed
11 #Taliban terrorists were killed and another was wounded in operations conducted by #ANDSF with support from #AAF in Panjwae district & at the outskirts of #Kandahar provincial center, yesterday.
Also, 7 weapons and some amount of their weapons & amos were destroyed. pic.twitter.com/nsDbdUyiBo
— Ministry of Defense, Afghanistan (@MoDAfghanistan) August 1, 2021
These developments occur as the Taliban makes active territorial gains amid the US military’s ultimate withdrawal from the war-torn nation.
The Taliban started seizing large portions of rural territory and capturing key border crossings, the Taliban have attacked provincial capitals taking over. Last night they fired three rockets at the airport in Kandahar Afghanistan’s second-largest city and a previous stronghold of the terrorists.
As the battle raged, the Afghan Ministry of Defense tweeted:
8 #Taliban terrorists were killed and 6 others were wounded in an operation conducted by #ANDSF at the outskirts of #Farah provincial center, yesterday.
Also, 2 vehicles were seized, some amount of their weapons & ammunition were destroyed.
— Ministry of Defense, Afghanistan (@MoDAfghanistan) August 1, 2021
-The Afghan defense forces are increasingly relying on airstrikes to push the Taliban back from cities even though they run the risk of killing civilians in this attempt.
Who are the Taliban?
The Taliban refer to themselves as the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is a Deobandi Islamist movement and military organization in Afghanistan, currently waging war (an insurgency, or jihad) within the country. Since 2016, the Taliban’s leader has been Mawlawi Hibatullah Akhundzada.
From 1996 to 2001, the Taliban held power over roughly three-quarters of Afghanistan and enforced a severe interpretation of Sharia, or Islamic law. The Taliban rose in 1994 as one of the prominent factions in the Afghan Civil War.
Under the leadership of Mohammed Omar, the movement spread throughout most of Afghanistan, sequestering power from the Mujahideen warlords. The totalitarian Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan was established in 1996 and the Afghan capital was transferred to Kandahar. It held control of most of the country until being overthrown after the American-led invasion of Afghanistan in December 2001 following the September 11 attacks.
At its peak, formal diplomatic recognition of the Taliban’s government was acknowledged by only three nations: Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. The group later regrouped as an insurgency movement to fight the American-backed Karzai administration and the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in the War in Afghanistan.
The Taliban have been denounced internationally for the harsh enforcement of their interpretation of Islamic Sharia law, which has resulted in the brutal treatment of many Afghans.
During their rule from 1996 to 2001, the Taliban and their allies committed massacres against Afghan civilians, denied UN food supplies to 160,000 starving civilians, and conducted a policy of scorched earth, burning vast areas of fertile land and destroying tens of thousands of homes.
During their rule, they banned hobbies and activities such as kite flying and keeping birds as pets, and discriminated against religious and ethnic minorities. According to the United Nations, the Taliban and their allies were responsible for 76% of Afghan civilian casualties in 2010, 80% in 2011, and 80% in 2012.
The Taliban has also engaged in cultural genocide.
The Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence and military are widely alleged by the international community and the Afghan government to have provided support to the Taliban during their founding and time in power, and of continuing to support the Taliban during the insurgency. Pakistan states that it dropped all support for the group after the 11 September attacks.
Reportedly 2,500 Arabs under command of Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden fought for the Taliban.