In the videos shared on social media, the insurgents are seen parading in the captured Humvees, with the group's flags spotted being installed on the rooftop of the military vehicles, RIA Novosti reported.
The footage was posted after local police announced on Friday that the Taliban took control of Zaranj's airport and the provincial administration building. The city is the first Afghan provincial capital that the group has managed to capture since 2016.
In a separate development on Friday, the Taliban reportedly seized the city of Shabarghan, the provincial capital of Jowzjan.
The development came as Afghan Ambassador to the UN Ghulam Isaczai said that Kabul expects the UN Security Council to take immediate action to deter further human rights violations committed by the Taliban in the country.
He added the Afghan government is "absolutely confident" that the country's army "will be able to withstand the additional pressure" from the Taliban.
Also on Friday, US Senior Adviser for Special Political Affairs Jeffrey DeLaurentis emphasised that Taliban militants "must hear from the international community that we will not accept a military takeover of Afghanistan, or return of the Taliban's Islamic Emirate".
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The Taliban captured the city of Sheberghan, the second Afghan provincial capital to fall to the armed group in less than 24 hours, the city’s deputy governor said.
ReplyDeleteQader Malia, the deputy governor of Sheberghan in Jawzjan province, said on Saturday that government forces and officials had retreated to the airport on the outskirts of the Northern Afghan city, where they were preparing to defend themselves.
“The city has unfortunately fallen completely,” Malia told AFP news agency, adding, “The [government] forces and officials have retreated to the airport.”
Provincial Councillor Bismillah Sahil said the Taliban fighters had taken over key buildings such as the governor’s office, the police headquarters and the central prison in the city.
However, the pro-government forces were still holding some areas inside the city such as the airport and an army brigade, according to Mohammad Karim Jawzjani, a parliamentarian who represents Jawzjan.
The city is home to notorious strongman Abdul Rashid Dostum, who only returned to Afghanistan this week after medical treatment in Turkey.