'Over 600 Taliban Fighters Killed In Panjshir Valley, 1000 Captured', Claim Afghan Resistance Forces

Around 600 Taliban fighters have been killed in the fight against Afghan resistance forces in Afghanistan’s northeastern province of Panjshir, the resistance forces have claimed.

Militiamen loyal to Ahmad Massoud, son of the late Ahmad Shah Massoud, take part in a training exercise, in Panjshir province, northeastern Afghanistan. (AP Photo/Jalaluddin Sekandar)

New Delhi: After refuting reports of the Taliban capturing Panjshir valley, resistance forces have claimed that around 600 Taliban terrorists were killed in Afghanistan's northeastern province of Panjshir, according to a report by Sputnik.

"About 600 Taliban have been liquidated in various districts of Panjshir since morning. More than 1,000 Taliban have been captured or surrendered themselves," the resistance forces' spokesperson Fahim Dashti tweeted.

The spokesperson further added that the Taliban had problems with getting supplies from other Afghan provinces, Sputnik reported.

Meanwhile, the Taliban offensive against Panjshir resistance forces has slowed down due to the presence of land mines in the area.

A Taliban source said fighting is continuing in Panjshir but the advance had been slowed by landmines on the road to the capital Bazarak and the provincial governor's compound, reported Al Jazeera.

Taliban spokesperson Bilal Karimi said the Khinj and Unabah districts had been taken, giving Taliban forces control of four of the province's seven districts. "The Mujahideen (Taliban fighters) are advancing toward the centre (of the province)," he said on Twitter.

The Panjshir Valley is the last region not under Taliban control following their stunning blitz across Afghanistan. Local fighters held off the Soviets in the 1980s and the Taliban a decade later under the leadership of Ahmad Shah Massoud, a guerrilla fighter who attained near-mythic status before he was killed in a suicide bombing in 2001. Ex-Vice President Amrullah Saleh is also in Panjshir and has declared himself caretaker President.

In Panjshir, former Vice-President Amrullah Saleh holed out alongside Ahmad Massoud, admitted the perilous position of the National Resistance Front.

 The former leader, who had sent the recorded video to BBCWorld, could be seen allaying the fear of being under attack from terrorists and pointed the finger of blame at Pakistan, according to a tweet. He added that Pakistan, of course, had denied supporting Taliban forces.

Referring to the reports of his disappearance as baseless, Saleh said the forces are resisting. In his official Twitter account, he said,  “The Resistance is continuing and will continue. I am here with my soil, for my soil & defending its dignity.”