KANDAHAR, Afghanistan: Taliban fighters captured the strategic southern district of Sangin on Thursday, officials said, another setback for Afghan forces in opium-rich Helmand province ahead of the spring fighting season.
The capture of Sangin, where US and British forces suffered heavy casualties until it was handed over to Afghan personnel, marks the culmination of the Taliban’s year-long offensive to seize the district and underscores their growing strength.
Most of Helmand is already estimated to be under Taliban control, with the capital Lashkar Gah — one of the last government-held enclaves — also at the risk of falling to the Taliban’s repeated ferocious assaults.
“Our forces have retreated from government offices, including the police headquarters and the governor’s office in Sangin,” Helmand governor’s spokesman Omar Zwak told AFP.
