Afghanistan: Taliban and resistance fighters clash in Panjsher Valley as top US general warns of civil war

The National Resistance Front of Afghanistan, which combines forces loyal to local leader Ahmad Massoud, is holding out against Taliban rule

In Kabul, Taliban fighters broke up a demonstration by about a dozen women urging the group to respect women’s rights to education and jobs

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A Taliban fighter stand guards in Kabul. Photo: AP

Published: 2:30pm, 5 Sep 2021Updated: 10:15pm, 5 Sep 2021

Taliban fighters on Sunday advanced deep into the Panjsher Valley north of Kabul, the last Afghan province holding out against the militant group, as the top US general warned of a “civil war” if the Islamists failed to consolidate power.

Both sides claimed to have the upper hand in Panjsher but neither could produce conclusive evidence to prove it. The Taliban, which swept through the country ahead of the final withdrawal of US-led forces this week, was unable to control the valley when it ruled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001.

Taliban official Bilal Karimi on Sunday reported heavy clashes in Panjsher, and while resistance fighters insist they have the Islamists at bay, analysts warned they are struggling.

The National Resistance Front of Afghanistan, grouping forces loyal to local leader Ahmad Massoud, said it surrounded “thousands of terrorists” in Khawak pass and the Taliban had abandoned vehicles and equipment in the Dashte Rewak area. Front spokesman Fahim Dashti added “heavy clashes” were continuing.

Bill Roggio, managing editor of the US-based Long War Journal, said on Sunday that while there was still a “fog of war” – with unconfirmed reports the Taliban had captured multiple districts – “it looks bad”.

Both sides claim to have inflicted heavy losses on the other. “The Taliban army has been hardened with 20 years of war, and make no mistake, the Taliban trained an army,” Roggio tweeted, adding that “the odds were long” for the Panjsher resistance.

“The Taliban army was injected with a massive amount of weapons and munitions after the US withdrawal and collapse of the ANA” (Afghan National Army), he added.