Taliban Threatens To Seize Capital Of Helmand Province

Heavy fighting between the Taliban and Afghan government forces has continued in the capital of Helmand province, Lashkar Gah. The Taliban now control several districts of the city, according to local journalists contacted by CNN, Tim Lister reported.

Photo Insert: A US Military op in Helmand prior to the recent troop withdrawal

The Afghan military reinforced its presence in the city on Saturday, bringing in Special Forces troops, according to a tweet from the 215 Corps, an army unit. It also carried out airstrikes against Taliban positions.

Lashkar Gah sits on strategic routes in all directions, including the highway between Kandahar and Herat and important agricultural areas to the south of the city. The Taliban has long had a strong presence in Helmand province, including around the capital, but has not occupied any part of the capital since being overthrown in 2001.

If Lashkar Gah were to fall to the Taliban, it would be the first of Afghanistan's 34 provincial capitals to be lost by the government. But several others are surrounded by the Taliban, which also controls several major highways across Afghanistan.

The Taliban accused a "mercenary enemy" of killing civilians in an airstrike on the seventh district of Lashkar Gah, an area that's seen heavy clashes. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid tweeted that "many houses were destroyed and people suffered great financial losses."

There was no way to confirm the Taliban claim.

One journalist in the city told CNN Sunday that clashes were continuing in the first and seventh districts, and the Taliban had taken the ninth. He said government forces now only controlled one district.

The Afghan military has spoken of heavy fighting in Lashkar Gah, with the 215 Corps tweeting late Saturday that 51 Taliban were killed and 40 others wounded in operations on the outskirts of the city.

In its latest bulletin, the Afghan Ministry of Defense reports fighting in 13 provinces and says 254 Taliban have been killed in the past day. The Afghan military has spoken of heavy fighting in Lashkar Gah, with the 215 Corps tweeting late Saturday that 51 Taliban were killed and 40 others wounded in operations on the outskirts of the city.

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