• The Afghan authorities will deploy new troops to retake the Islamic Kala post, the largest trade crossing point between Iran and Afghanistan.
• The seizure of multiple border crossings and the taxes they generate may fill the Taliban’s coffers with new income.
• At the same time, Beijing criticized Washington for hastily withdrawing troops. Urge its citizens to leave the country “as soon as possible.”

Kabul: On Saturday, the Afghan authorities are preparing to try to retake a key crossing point occupied by the Taliban. The organization claimed that the organization claimed to have helped occupy a large area of ​​this violent country.

As the U.S. forces continue to withdraw, the Taliban stated that their fighters have occupied two border crossings in western Afghanistan-completing a section of territory from the Iranian border to the Chinese border.

A Taliban official claimed on Friday that it now owns 85% of the country and controls about 250 of the nearly 400 areas in Afghanistan-a statement that cannot be independently verified, and the government disputes this.

The Taliban claim 85% of the Afghan territory under its control

At the same time, Beijing criticized Washington for its hasty evacuation and urged its citizens to leave the country “as soon as possible” after evacuating 210 nationals.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the “complex and severe domestic security situation” triggered an evacuation warning, adding that 22 of them had tested positive for the coronavirus when they arrived in China.

Taliban profit

On Friday, Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid told Agence France-Presse Their fighters occupied the border town of Islamkala on the Iranian border and the Torhondi border crossing in Turkmenistan.

Gilani Fahad, a spokesman for the governor of Herat Province, said on Saturday that the authorities are deploying new troops to retake the Islamic Kala post, the largest trade crossing point between Iran and Afghanistan.

“They will be sent there soon,” he told Agence France-Presse.

The Afghan government has repeatedly denied that the Taliban’s gains have little strategic value, but the seizure of multiple border crossings and the taxes they generate may fill the organization’s coffers with new revenue.

An official at a hospital in Kandahar (the country’s second largest city and the birthplace of the Taliban) said that in the past 24 hours, dozens of wounded have been admitted to the hospital. One clear sign is that the fighting is approaching the main city center. Including at least 15 service personnel.

Since the Taliban have destroyed most of northern Afghanistan in recent weeks, the government only owns a cluster of provincial capitals, which must be reinforced and air-supplied to a large extent.

Even before the Taliban’s lightning offensive overwhelmed the government’s northern and western positions, the Air Force was already under severe pressure, putting further pressure on the country’s limited aircraft and pilots.

President Joe Biden said on Thursday that the US military mission will end on August 31 — nearly 20 years after it began — but he admitted that it is “extremely unlikely” that Kabul will control the entire country.

“The status quo is not an option,” Biden said of staying in the country. “I will not send another generation of Americans to fight in Afghanistan.”

Joe Biden says Kabul’s fall to the Taliban is not inevitable

Biden said that only the Afghan people can determine their future, but he acknowledged the uncertainty of what the future will look like.

When asked if the Taliban takeover is inevitable, the president said: “No, it’s not the case.”

Militia deployment

The Afghan commandos clashed with the Taliban in the provincial capital for the first time this week. Thousands of people fled Qala-i-Naw in the northwestern part of Badghis Province.

The Afghan Ministry of Defense said on Friday that government forces had “complete control” of the city, but a local official said on Saturday that the group launched another attack at night.

On Saturday, the Taliban also claimed to have occupied an area in Laghman Province near Kabul.

Approximately 100 kilometers (60 miles) from the Iranian border, Ismail Khan, a veteran warlord whose fighters helped the US military overthrow the Taliban in 2001, vowed to support government forces in fighting the organization.

“We will go to the front line soon and change the situation with God’s help,” Khan told reporters in the western city of Herat.

On Saturday, hundreds of Khan’s fighters deployed throughout the city and guarded the gates, Agence France-Presse Reporter reports.

U.S. pushes for agreement

The Taliban acted boldly because of the U.S. withdrawal, and when the Doha peace talks were deadlocked, the Taliban seemed eager to achieve a full military victory.

Nevertheless, on Thursday, Taliban negotiating team member Sohail Shaheen insisted that the insurgents were seeking a “negotiated settlement.”

But President Ashraf Ghani said that the insurgents were not interested in negotiations.

“When one party wants to negotiate and the other does not want to talk, right?” he said in a speech on Saturday.

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin called on the international community to exert pressure to force an agreement.

He said in a tweet: “By continuing to push, the whole world can help.”

The head of the Pentagon did not specify which countries he urged to help, but it is widely believed that Pakistan has a major influence on the Taliban in Afghanistan.

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin seeks international support to resolve conflict in Afghanistan

In recent weeks, another neighboring country, China, has severely criticized what it believes is Washington’s hasty and chaotic withdrawal.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said at a regular press conference on Friday: “The United States has hurriedly withdrew its troops from Afghanistan, disregarding its responsibilities and obligations, dumping chaos and war on the Afghan people and regional countries.”

“As the initiator of the Afghan issue, the United States bears an unshirkable responsibility.”