PUL-I-KHUMRI (SW): Taliban have warned residents in Mangalha, Kokchinar, Kakamangal, Qandahari and Qaisar Khyel areas in northern Bahglan province to evacuate their homes.
Residents in Mangalha have said that the militants recently warned them to evacuate their houses or otherwise they would find themselves caught in the crossfire.
Expressing concerns, residents in these district have said that if the government did not save them from such threats by the Taliban, they would be faced with serious challenges.
Niamatullah, another resident in Mangalha district, said that the Taliban aim to conduct offensives against the security forces in the area, and in case the fighting does take place, it would be the civilian who would bear the brunt of it.
Abdul Satar Barez, governor of Baghlan, said in this regard that the security forces are fully prepared to respond to any threats posed by the militants. Speaking at a press conference in the provincial capital Pul-i-Khumri, he said that the government would not allow the Taliban to attack and overrun Kokchinar, Qaisarkheyl and Mangalha areas again.
Nearly a month ago, these areas were under the full control of the militants but the security forces, by conducting a military operation ‘Naveed-1”, cleared the areas of them. According to the locals, the Taliban have overrun parts of these areas after the operation, and have warned the local residents about their eminent attacks.
ENDS
