The Taliban movement in Afghanistan has said on Friday that it has now established control over 85 percent of all Afghan territory, as the insurgent group launches an offensive in parallel with the withdrawal of US troops from the country.
The Taliban has made significant progress and have taken control of an area stretching westward from the Iranian border to the Chinese border in the northeast of the country.
Taliban negotiator Shahabuddin Delawar told a press conference in Moscow that around 85 percent of the country is under their control.
The group had also previously announced that it had captured Islam Qala, Afghanistan’s most important border crossing with Iran, located in the western province of Herat.
“The Islam Qala border crossing is under our full control, and we will restart it today,” Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told AFP.
Islam Qala is one of the most important border crossings in Afghanistan and sees most of the legitimate trade between the two countries pass through it.
Kabul has obtained an exemption from Washington that allows it to import Iranian fuel and gas despite US sanctions on the Islamic Republic.
