Ghani and Jihadi leaders agree to quickly arm civilian forces to help fight Taliban

President Ashraf Ghani met with prominent Afghan political and Jihadi leaders Monday and discussed the current situation in Afghanistan, the Presidential Palace (ARG) said in a statement.

According to ARG, the Afghan leaders decided to equip public uprising forces quickly in order for them to fight the Taliban militants.

“In this meeting, a decision was made on supporting the security forces, to safeguard and keep the Republic, and on the cohesion, strengthening and rapid equipping of the public uprisings against the enemy’s attacks,” the statement read.

This comes after public uprising forces criticized Kabul for not providing enough support to the frontlines, as Taliban militants advanced on the capitals of four provinces in the country.

So far, the militants have captured Zaranj city of Nimroz province and parts of Sheberghan city of Jawzjan province.

Taliban fighters also launched attacks on Mazar-e-Sharif city of Balkh, Kunduz city, Takhar’s Taloqan city, and Sar-e-Pul province.

The Defense Ministry, however, stated that the Taliban attack in Balkh’s Dehdadi district failed as a result of an operation by the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) on Monday.

The Taliban suffered heavy casualties and fled the area, the Ministry said.