The United Nations Security Council will hold an open session tomorrow, Friday, to discuss the situation in Afghanistan, where battles are intensifying between government forces and Taliban militants, at a time when international efforts and calls for a ceasefire intensify.

The meeting was decided upon at the request of the Afghan government, Norway and Estonia, and will take place at 10 am (14:00 GMT), diplomats said.

The last time the Security Council met to discuss the situation in Afghanistan was last June, but the security situation has deteriorated rapidly since then.

The Taliban currently controls large areas of the countryside, and continues to advance in many large cities, including Herat, near the western border with Iran, and Kandahar in the south.

And the Taliban announced in a statement this morning, Thursday, that its militants had taken control of the headquarters of the "Kunj" directorate in the state of Nimroz, in the west of the country.

It has not yet released any information or details.


a hundred dead

In turn, the Afghan Ministry of Defense announced that about 100 Taliban fighters were killed during ground and air military operations in a number of states across the country.

The ministry added that 16 Taliban fighters were killed and 10 wounded in the "Dand" district of Kandahar province, and about 60 were killed in Zabul province, in addition to 23 in Baghlan province.

The ministry published videos that it said showed Afghan forces targeting Taliban fighters in Kandahar and Balkh provinces with air strikes.

For its part, the Taliban said it had changed its strategy from targeting rural and remote areas in Afghanistan to attacking cities in the states in response to the increase in US air strikes after the United States announced that it was putting an end to its longest war.

Three Taliban commanders told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity, that they are currently focused on taking Herat and Kandahar, with their eyes on Lashkar Gah.


lose momentum

On the other hand, the Russian "Interfax" news agency quoted a senior Russian Foreign Ministry official as saying today, Thursday, that the Taliban attack "gradually loses its momentum" with the movement's need for the necessary resources to seize major cities.

And Alexander Vikantov, deputy director of the Information and Press Department at the Russian Foreign Ministry, cited incidents in which Afghan government forces managed to regain some areas captured by the Taliban last month.

In a related context, Russia launched today, Thursday, joint military exercises with Uzbekistan and Tajikistan near the border between Tajikistan and Afghanistan.

Russia presents itself as a barrier to prevent this conflict from spreading to the three former Soviet republics that share a border with Afghanistan.

The level of violence has increased across Afghanistan since the beginning of last May, when the Taliban launched an operation in large parts of the country, coinciding with the start of the US military's final stages of withdrawal, bringing the curtain down on a 20-year war.

The Afghan and US militaries have stepped up their air strikes against Taliban militants, who warned Wednesday that they would target senior government officials in response.

Russia launched joint military exercises with Uzbekistan and Tajikistan (Anatolia)

Diplomatic endeavors

Politically, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken reiterated the United States' commitment to seeking a just and lasting political settlement that ends the war in Afghanistan.

The US State Department said that the confirmation came in a call that Blinken made with the head of the Afghan Supreme Council for National Reconciliation Abdullah Abdullah, during which the two sides denounced the continued Taliban attacks and the resulting casualties and displacement of the population.

She added that the officials discussed ways to speed up peace negotiations and achieve a political settlement that guarantees the rights of Afghans and prevents the use of Afghan soil to threaten the United States and its allies.

For its part, the European Union called for an urgent, comprehensive and lasting ceasefire in Afghanistan to give peace a chance.

In a statement, the European Union condemned what it described as the reckless violence that causes the suffering of the Afghan people, and condemned the Taliban attacks, especially targeting the office of the United Nations Mission in Herat Province.

The statement considered that the Taliban's attacks directly contradict their declared commitment to a negotiated settlement of the conflict and the peace process hosted by the Qatari capital, Doha.

The European Union stressed that the Taliban's practices may amount to war crimes, calling for investigations and those responsible for them to be held accountable.