Dozens of Ghor women take up arms in support of ANDSF against Taliban resurgence

Kabul [Afghanistan], July 6 : Dozens of Ghor women took up arms in the capital city of Feroz Koh of Ghor Province in central Afghanistan to pledge their support to the Republic and the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) against Taliban resurgence.
The women said that the historical record of the five years of the Taliban regime proved that the group violates women's rights, reported The Frontier Post.
Thousands of people have taken up arms in support of the Afghan forces as the fall of districts to the Taliban continues. "They are standing by their brothers and are supporting the system, the people, and the country's sovereignty," a Ghor resident said.
The exact number of those who have taken up arms against the Taliban is so far not clear. The defense and interior ministries said that these forces will eventually be combined with the local police, NDS local forces, and the local army forces, reported The Frontier Post.
Atta Mohammad Noor, who leads a public mobilisation movement in Balkh and has gone to Balkh districts to fight the Taliban, criticised some government officials for not cooperating with them in their campaign against the group.
"We hear some words from some sides asking why have they gone to the war? They should stay in the city and hand over the war to us. My brother, you are losing the war," Noor said.
Meanwhile, the office of Ahmad Massoud, a public figure and son of the national hero Ahmad Shah Massoud, said that former Mujahideen leaders are making efforts to reorganize a new front against the Taliban by consulting political leaders from the former resistance front, reported The Frontier Post.
"We hope that this front is announced and the public uprising forces become organized," said Saleh Mohammad Registani, a member of Ahmad Massoud's political office.
There are questions about the achievements of the public uprising forces, but representatives of these forces said they have succeeded in preventing the fall of their towns to the Taliban.
"They have proved effective in defending the security belts on the outskirts of Kunduz city," said Rabbani Rabbani, a member of the Kunduz provincial council.
"So far, we have not seen proper support by the government for the people," said Abdul Basir Osmani, an MP from Badghis.
In view of the US decision to withdraw the entire force from Afghanistan, the Taliban troops have been capturing newer districts and areas at a lightning speed and the Afghan government forces are also fleeing from a number of places there.
In Kandahar, the Taliban have captured important bridges and roads connecting the city with other parts and the Afghan officials are also taking steps to ensure their own security, reports from Afghanistan suggested.