Victorious Taliban parade in US Humvees & chant ‘Allahu Akbar’ as they capture first of Afghanistan’s key cities
VICTORIOUS Taliban militants today paraded through the streets in captured US Humvees while chanting “Allahu Akbar”.
The gloating gunmen flew the group’s white flag as they captured Zaranj – the first of the key cities in Afghanistan.
The hard-line fighters are rampaging across the country, rapidly seizing swathes of countryside.
They have captured more than half of Afghan territory after American and British troops withdrew.
And they are now targeting key cities, including provincial capitals Herat in the west and Lashkar Gah in the south.
Zaranj, the Taliban’s latest capture, is a major trading hub near the border with Iran.
Videos on social media show the Taliban riding on US military trucks taken after President Joe Biden pulled his forces from the country.
Another shows the fighters storming the streets on foot armed with guns, also thought to be stolen from the American army.
Shots are fired into the air to cries of “Allahu Akbar” as the group makes it known they are now in control.
The scenes are reminiscent of those in 2014 when masked ISIS members paraded through Syria and Iraq in US Humvees during their lightning offensive.
In a separate clip, prisoners allegedly escape from a jail in the city.
All Taliban prisoners are being transferred to a safe location while locals are encouraged to loot and torch government and military check posts, it is claimed.
Civilians have been fleeing to borders to escape the advancing forces as the humanitarian crisis escalates.
In a clip reportedly taken this morning, crowds of people, some with young children, appear to be making a hurried exit as they seek refuge in Iran.
Some reports claim local officials and military commanders have also fled to the neighbouring country to find safety.
It comes shortly after a hit squad murdered a government spokesman in the Afghan capital Kabul.
Taliban fighters assassinated media and information officer Dawa Khan Minapal on Friday as “punishment for his deeds”, the group’s spokesperson said.
Clashes have intensified with Afghan forces, with dozens of the country’s troops rounded up, executed and dumped in mass graves in a horrifying attack by the Taliban.
Graphic pictures show the bloodied bodies of what are claimed to be military personnel in Kang District in south-eastern Afghanistan.
The locals who captured the disturbing images claimed that “a number of soldiers who were taken captive after fighting were first tortured, their hands were tied and eyes were gouged”.
