Taliban take Kandahar, Herat in major Afghanistan offensive

By TAMEEM AKHGAR, RAHIM FAIEZ and JON GAMBRELL
Associated Press

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — The Taliban have captured two major Afghan cities, the country’s second- and third-largest after Kabul, and a strategic provincial capital. The developments on Thursday further squeeze the embattled government just weeks before the end of the American military mission. The seizure of Kandahar and Herat marks the biggest prizes yet for the Taliban, who have taken 12 of Afghanistan’s 34 provincial capitals as part of a weeklong blitz. The capture of the city of Ghazni, meanwhile, cuts off a crucial highway linking the Afghan capital with the country’s southern provinces. The U.S. meanwhile plans to send in 3,000 combat troops to evacuate personnel and the American Embassy in Kabul.