Citing Afghan officials, Afghan new agency Khaama Press reported today that Afghan security forces have regained control of the Qala-e Zal district of Kunduz province, ten days after it fell to the Taliban militants.
A statement from the Interior Ministry of Afghanistan said security forces launched their operation to retake Qala-e Zal, a district to the northwest of Kunduz, on Tuesday morning and secured the district governor's office, police headquarters and other areas.
The provincial police spokesman Mr. Rahmani earlier said the offensive is underway as the Afghan forces have made major gains as the offensive is underway, according to Khaama Press.
He said the operations were launched from the Aqtapa village and Afghan forces are moving forward to fully clear the district.
Taliban militants seized Qala-e Zal, on the border with Tajikistan, on May 6 as they stepped up pressure on Kunduz at the start of their annual spring offensive.
Fighting has been going on all around Kunduz, with security forces struggling to open the main highway into the city after it was blocked with mines and improvised roadside bombs.
Reuters reports that although the city center itself is in government hands, the Taliban control most of the surrounding districts and thousands of residents are reported to have fled their homes to avoid the fighting.
Kunduz has been one of the Taliban's main targets ever since international troops largely ended their combat mission in Afghanistan in 2014. Over the past two years, the insurgents have twice managed to seize the city center for brief periods before being driven off after days of fighting and air strikes.
According to U.S. estimates, the government controls only about 60 percent of the country with the rest either under Taliban control or contested by the insurgents.
