- Title: Taliban say have taken control of Afghanistan’s western city of Farah
- Date: 11th August 2021
- Summary: SAID TO BE FARAH, AFGHANISTAN (RECENT) (VIDEO OBTAINED BY REUTERS) SAID TO BE TALIBAN FIGHTERS DRAGGING BODY OF A MAN ON THE GROUND / AUDIO OF CHANTING "LONG LIVE THE ISLAMIC EMIRATE" SAID TO BE TALIBAN FIGHTERS AND OTHER PEOPLE GATHERING / SAID TO BE A TALIBAN FIGHTER SHOOTING TOWARD WHERE THE MAN'S BODY WAS THROWN VARIOUS OF PEOPLE SAID TO BE TALIBAN FIGHTERS RIDING MOTORBIKES ON STREET / FUEL TRUCK DRIVING PAST / SAID TO BE TALIBAN FIGHTERS GATHERING (SOUNDBITE) (Pashto) SAID TO BE TALIBAN FIGHTER, UNNAMED, SAYING: "We have taken almost the whole city. Except for the NDS (National Directorate of Security) headquarters, the whole city has been conquered." SAID TO BE TALIBAN FIGHTERS WALKING ON SIDEWALK AT A BAZAAR WITH CLOSED SHOPS SAID TO BE TALIBAN FIGHTERS GATHERING / MOTORBIKES AND OTHER VEHICLES CROSSING THE STREET VARIOUS OF TRAFFIC ON STREET / CLOSED SHOPS / SAID TO BE TALIBAN FIGHTERS GATHERED VARIOUS OF VIEW OF PEOPLE ON STREETS FROM MOTORBIKE SAID TO BE FARAH, AFGHANISTAN (RECENT) (ORIGINALLY SHOT IN PORTRAIT) (VIDEO OBTAINED BY REUTERS) VARIOUS OF SAID TO BE TALIBAN FIGHTERS GATHERING IN FRONT OF FARAH PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT OFFICE / A MILITARY VEHICLE PARKED AT THE AREA SAID TO BE TALIBAN FIGHTERS RIDING MOTORBIKES THROUGH STREET
- Embargoed: 25th August 2021 16:12
- Keywords: Farah City afghanistan figthers taliban
- Location: SAID TO BE FARAH, AFGHANISTAN
- City: SAID TO BE FARAH, AFGHANISTAN
- Country: Afghanistan
- Topics: Asia / Pacific,Conflicts/War/Peace,Insurgencies
- Reuters ID: LVA001EPU3HAF
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: EDITORS PLEASE NOTE: QUALITY AS INCOMING, CONTAINS GRAPHIC MATERIAL
EDITORS PLEASE NOTE: REUTERS COULD NOT INDEPENDENTLY VERIFY THE LOCATIONS NOR THE DATE OF THE FOOTAGE
Video footage obtained by Reuters on Wednesday (August 11) showed Taliban fighters riding motorbikes, carrying guns and dragging a body of a man on the ground as they shot at him in an area which is believed to be the city of Farah in western Afghanistan.
Reuters could not independently verify the locations nor the date of the footage.
Homayoon Shahidzada, a lawmaker from the Farah province, told Reuters that the whole city had fallen to the Taliban, and only one army base on its outskirts is resisting their advance.
Taliban fighters could isolate Afghanistan's capital in 30 days and possibly take it over in 90, a U.S. defence official told Reuters on Wednesday citing U.S. intelligence, as the resurgent militants took control of an eighth provincial Afghan capital.
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that the new assessment of how long Kabul could stand was a result of the rapid gains the Taliban had been making around the country as U.S.-led foreign forces leave.
The Islamists now control 65% of the country. All gateways to Kabul, which lies in a valley surrounded by mountains, were choked with civilians entering the city and fleeing violence elsewhere, a Western security source in the city told Reuters, making it hard to tell whether Taliban fighters were also getting through.
The Taliban have captured districts bordering Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Iran, Pakistan and China, heightening regional security concerns.
The Taliban are battling to defeat the U.S-backed government and reimpose strict Islamic law. The speed of their advance has shocked the government and its allies. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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