KABUL, Afghanistan -- U.S. and Afghan airstrikes hit Taliban targets overnight in southern Helmand province in an effort to dislodge the insurgents after they captured much of the provincial capital, Lashkar Gah, officials said Wednesday.
The United Nations and Human Rights Watch asked both sides to take care to prevent civilian casualties as the fighting rages on. The Taliban have waged a fierce push over the past months as U.S. and NATO forces complete their pullout from the war-torn country. They have taken large portions of territory and have now turned their guns on larger urban centers.
Ghulam Wali Afghan, a lawmaker from Helmand, said his relatives and constituents in Lashkar Gah have told him of bodies in the streets and residents hiding inside their homes, too afraid to venture out and collect the dead.
After a night of heavy airstrikes, the Defense Ministry said Wednesday that the Taliban have suffered heavy losses in Lashkar Gah, though there was no immediate way to confirm that statement. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid denied the losses.
The authorities did not say whether Afghan forces have retaken territory. Tuesday, residents and officials had said the Taliban control nine out of 10 districts in the city.
The fall of Lashkar Gah would be a major turning point in the Taliban offensive, and it also would be the first provincial capital to be captured by the insurgents in several years. The fighting this week has kept residents of Lashkar Gah trapped and hunkered down inside their homes.
Wednesday, the province's hospital chief, Sher Ali Shakir, urged people to remain in their houses, saying that in 24 hours at least seven civilians were killed and 101 were wounded. Most of the injuries were bullet wounds, he said.
The airstrikes late Tuesday and ongoing street battles in Lashkar Gah have destroyed several houses and markets. The Helmand provincial council chief, Attaullah Afghan, said both sides were ignoring the safety of civilians.
Earlier Tuesday, a dramatic call for people to evacuate the neighborhoods captured by the Taliban was issued from the Afghan forces' commander for Helmand, Gen. Sami Sadat, who in an audio message asked the residents for forgiveness for the hardship they are going through.
"We will not leave the Taliban alive," Sadat said. "I know it's hard ... we do it for your future. Forgive us if you get displaced for few days, please evacuate as soon as possible."
Lashkar Gah is one of three provincial capitals under siege by the Taliban as they stepped up their onslaught against government forces. The push on the cities occured after the Taliban swept through dozens of districts across the country, many in remote and rural, sparsely populated areas. Along with Lashkar Gah, the provincial capitals of Herat, in western Herat province, and Kandahar, in southern Kandahar province have been under Taliban attack.
Save the Children's country director for Afghanistan said the aid group was "devastated by reports that 18 civilians, including women and children, have been killed during airstrikes on the city of Kandahar."
Christopher Nyamandi, citing media reports, said "some 49,000 people have been displaced since the violence flared up yesterday, including an estimated 29,400 children." He said that Save the Children was providing aid to the displaced families.
There was no confirmation from the government on the report of 18 civilians killed.
Meanwhile, Turkey's Foreign Ministry has called the U.S. "irresponsible" after the Biden administration announced that it would expand efforts to assist at-risk Afghan citizens with the major caveat that the adjudication process would take months in a third country.
Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tanju Bilgic said Wednesday that the U.S. statement had suggested Turkey as an application spot "without consultation." He said Turkey does not have the capacity to shoulder another migration crisis.
"The U.S. may directly transport these people by plane. Turkey will not take over the international responsibilities of third countries," Bilgic said and added Turkey would not allow its laws to be abused by other countries. He said the U.S. announcement would trigger a major refugee crisis.
Turkey is already hosting some 3.7 million Syrians who fled the civil war there. Afghans also have fled to Turkey to escape their country's war and instability. Media reports from border towns with Iran show the number of Afghans crossing into Turkey are on the rise.
The State Department said Monday that it is widening the scope of Afghans eligible for refugee status in U.S. to include current and former employees of U.S. news organizations, U.S. aid and development agencies and other relief groups that receive U.S. funding. Current and former employees of the U.S. government and the NATO military operation who don't meet the criteria for a dedicated program for such workers also are covered.
But applicants must leave Afghanistan to begin the adjudication process that may take 12-14 months in a third country, and the U.S. does not intend to support their departures or stays there.
