GHAZNI – The fight for the embattled eastern Afghan city of Ghazni enteredits third day as Taliban militants and security forces engaged in heavyclashes Sunday after Kabul vowed the city was firmly under governmentcontrol.

An AFP reporter on the ground said Taliban fighters continued to roam thecity, torching government offices and in control of several policecheckpoints, with reinforcements deployed from Kabul slowly entering thecity to confront the insurgents.

Residents cowered in their homes or attempted to flee the fighting, asskyrocketing inflation hit basic provisions, according to residents andofficials.

“The situation is chaotic,” Amanullah Kamrani, deputy head of the Ghazniprovincial council, told AFP from Kabul.

“In Ghazni, only the police headquarters, governor’s office and a fewdepartments are under Afghan forces’ control — the rest are under theTaliban fighters’ control,” he added.

Ghazni resident Rahmatullah Andar described similar scenes in an interviewwith broadcaster Tolonews, saying fighting continued to rage in largeswathes of the city and outlying districts.

“There are not sufficient forces to repel the Taliban fighters. We have notwitnessed such a large-scale attack by the Taliban before,” said Andar.

Mobile services in the city remained down after militants damaged atelecommunication tower and targeted several media offices in Ghazni,making information difficult to verify.

The descriptions stood in stark contrast to statements from Afghan and USofficials Saturday, who said government forces were firmly in control ofthe city and vowed that Ghazni was in no danger of being seized by theTaliban.

Ghazni — around two hours by road from the capital Kabul — has been underincreasing danger from massing Taliban fighters for months, with reportssuggesting insurgents had infiltrated the city at will.

The onslaught was the latest attempt by the Taliban to overrun an urbancentre and comes as pressure increases on the insurgents to begin peacetalks with the government to end the nearly 17-year-old war.

The attack was the largest tactical operation launched by the Taliban sincean unprecedented truce in June brought fighting between security forces andthe Taliban to a temporary pause, providing war-weary Afghans some welcomerelief from the fighting. – APP/AFP