The Taliban claimed Friday to be in control of 85% of Afghanistan after seizing key border crossings with Iran and Turkmenistan, part of a sweeping offensive launched as US troops pull out of the war-torn nation.
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Hours after US President Joe Biden issued a staunch defense of his troops' withdrawal, the Taliban said its fighters had seized the two crossings in western Afghanistan – completing an arc of territory from the Iranian border to the frontier with China.
In Moscow, a delegation of Taliban officials said they controlled about 250 of Afghanistan's nearly 400 districts -- a claim impossible to independently verify, and which the government disputes.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said their fighters had captured the border town of Islam Qala on the Iranian frontier and the Torghundi crossing with Turkmenistan.
Afghanistan's Interior Ministry spokesman Tareq Arian said efforts were underway to dislodge the insurgents from their latest positions.
