Taliban say they took Panjshir, last holdout Afghan province
Kabul(AP): The Taliban said on Monday they have taken control of Panjshir province north of Kabul, the Afghan capital. The province was the last holdout of anti-Taliban forces in the country and the only province the Taliban had not seized during their sweep last month.
Thousands of Taliban fighters overrun eight districts of Panjshir overnight, according to witnesses from the area. They spoke on condition of anonymity fearing for their safety.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid issued a statement on Monday, saying Panjshir was now under the control of the Taliban fighters.
The anti-Taliban fighters had been led by the former vice president and the son of the iconic anti-Taliban fighter Ahmad Shah Massoud who was killed just days before the 9/11 attacks in the United States.
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Karnataka by-polls: Cong ahead in Bagalkot, BJP leads in Davanagere South
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Bengaluru (PTI): Trends show Congress and BJP have maintained leads respectively in Karnataka's Bagalkot and Davanagere South Assembly seats, where counting of votes is underway on Monday, for the bypolls held for two seats on April 9.
The polls were necessitated by the deaths of senior Congress MLAs H Y Meti (Bagalkot) and Shamanur Shivashankarappa (Davanagere South).
According to the Election Commission, Congress party's Umesh Meti was ahead of BJP's Veerabhadrayya Charantimath by a margin of 9,969 votes in Bagalkot.
In Davanagere South, BJP's Srinivas T Dasakariyappa was leading over Congress party's Samarth Mallikarjun by a margin of 8,539 votes.
Nine and 25 candidates were in the fray, respectively in the Bagalkot and Davanagere South Assembly segments.
