May 8, 2021
2 mins read

Taliban launches new offensives as US misses May 1 deadline

At least 11 Afghan security forces members were killed in terrorists’ attacks in eastern Afghanistan on Wednesday night, authorities confirmed on Thursday….reports Asian Lite News

Taliban have launched a new wave of offensive in several Afghan cities and are resorting to bombings and heavy weapons after the United States missed May 1 deadline to withdraw troops from Afghanistan.

Several cities around Afghanistan are witnessing the wrath of the Taliban’s attacks. The Afghan forces have suffered heavy casualties in the past few days as they fought back the terror group offensive.

At least 11 Afghan security forces members were killed in terrorists’ attacks in eastern Afghanistan on Wednesday night, authorities confirmed on Thursday.

Afghan security forces had launched airstrikes and deployed elite commando forces to the area. The insurgents had been pushed back but fighting was continuing on Tuesday and hundreds of families had been displaced, he added.

Security Council strongly condemns Afghan terror attack

“There was a thunderstorm of heavy weapons and blasts in the city and the sound of small arms was like someone was making popcorn,” The News International quoted Mulah Jan, a resident of a suburb of Helmand provincial capital Lashkar Gah, as saying.

“I took all my family members to the corner of the room, hearing the heavy blasts and bursts of gunfire as if it was happening behind our walls,” he said. Families that could afford to leave had fled, but he had been unable to go, waiting with his family in fear before the Taliban were pushed back.

Attaullah Afghan, the head of Helmand’s provincial council, said the Taliban had launched their huge offensive on Monday from multiple directions, attacking checkpoints around the outskirts of Lashkar Gah, taking over some of them.

Also read:Taliban capture key district in northern Afghanistan

US forces missed the May 1 deadline to withdraw troops. The May 1 deadline for US troops to pull out was agreed to last year under former President Donald Trump.

US President Joe Biden announced last month the decision to withdraw troops from the country starting on that May 1 deadline, with the aim of completely withdrawing from Afghanistan by September 11, which would mark the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks that sparked the war in Afghanistan, the longest conflict in American history.

The Taliban rejected President Joe Biden’s announcement that troops would stay on past the deadline but withdraw over the next four and a half months.

Last week on Thursday, White House Principal Deputy Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said that the US has begun pulling out its forces from Afghanistan.

On Monday, at least seven Afghan military personnel were killed when the Taliban set off explosives smuggled through a tunnel the group had dug into an army outpost in southwestern Farah province. (ANI)

Also read:N.Korea breaks ties with Malaysia

Previous Story

Maldives ex-president Nasheed hurt in assassination bid

Next Story

‘US ignored Pak outreach for rapprochement’

Latest from Afghanistan

1.5M Afghans Forced Back in 2025

UN warned that these women and girls face significant threats upon their return to Afghanistan, including poverty, early marriage, violence, and unprecedented restrictions. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has warned that

WFP’s $540m SOS for Afghanistan

Facing a deadly hunger crisis and climate shocks, Afghanistan pleads for urgent global aid as droughts, economic collapse and mass migration leave millions on the edge. Afghanistan is on the brink of

Pakistan Cracks Down on Afghans

Afghan refugees in limbo as Pakistan cancels registration cards…reports Asian Lite News Thousands of Afghan nationals are now caught in a humanitarian crisis after Pakistan recently cancelled the Proof of Registration (PoR)

UN flags looming Afghan meltdown

Funding gap, mass deportations and economic stagnation threaten to overwhelm fragile Afghan support systems….reports Asian Lite News The United Nations has issued an urgent appeal to the international community to address what
Go toTop

Don't Miss

Blast rocks Afghan province, leaves 1 dead

The blast took place in front of Faizabad Municipality at

On Indian food aid to Af, UN says humanitarian help should arrive ‘swiftly’

The UN wants humanitarian aid to arrive quickly anywhere where