Taliban fighters seized a major portion of the Afghan provincial capital of Kunduz Monday as they continue to battle government forces for control of the entire region.
As of Monday evening local time, insurgents controlled the main roundabout in the city of Kunduz. That evening, they were fighting government forces near the provincial police chief's compound, police spokesman Sayed Sarwar Hussaini told CNN.
Hussaini had previously denied claims that the insurgents held any government buildings, but the Taliban posted pictures on social media of various members inside a 200-bed hospital to prove they had control of the facility.
Interior Ministry spokesman Sediq Sediqqi had earlier stated that the Taliban forces' objective was to take control of the main city prison where hundreds of it's allies were held, but Afghan authorities were holding them at bay.
However, after launching a three-sided offensive at around dawn, insurgents, some armed with rocket-propelled grenades, managed to overwhelm security guards, break into the prison and free hundreds of fighters in what has been considered one of the most serious security breaches in 14 years of war, according to Yahoo! News.
Monday's assault is the latest in a series of clashes between Taliban and government forces in the region, with this attack being the second time insurgents attacked Kunduz this year, according to Reuters.
Taliban forces, boosted by an influx of fighters from Pakistan and elsewhere, have battled government forces throughout the province since spring.
