‘Made tactical withdrawal’: NRF leader says 60% of Panjshir still under control

The National Force (NRF), which is taking on the Taliban in Panjshir, has refuted claims that they have lost the province. NRF leader Ali Nazary said in an interview that 60 per cent of Panjshir is still under the NRF control.

Nazary also told CNN that the Taliban have suffered heavy casualties.

"The current situation in Pajshir is a hit more complex than what is being reported. The Taliban haven't taken the province, they have only taken the main road and the provincial centre is located near the main road. So this is why they were able to hoist their flag," Nazary said on CNN Connect.

He further said that the topography of Panjshir valley is very complex, which doesn't allow an invader to take over the entire area, adding that it has many sub-valleys. "60 to 65% of these sub-valleys and strategic positions are under our control."

Nazary said the NRF forces made a "tactical withdrawal" from the main road and will soon return.

Meanwhile, ousted Afghan government's ambassador to Tajikistan has said that Panjshiri leader Ahmad Shah Massoud and former Afghan Vice President Amrullah Saleh have not fled Afghanistan.

"Ahmad Massoud and Amrullah Saleh have not fled to Tajikistan. The news that Ahmad Massoud has left Panjshir is not true; he is inside Afghanistan," Zahir Aghbar said at a press conference.

Aghbar added that he is in regular contact with Saleh and that the resistance leaders were out of general communication for security reasons.

The Taliban swept to power last month and the militant group has said they have captured the Panjshir valley, a last holdout province, though the resistance has not conceded defeat.