Taliban militants reportedly took over another Afghan border crossing Thursday, this time with Iran.
The seizure was the third in the last seven days after the Taliban previously captured crossings with Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. The ongoing Taliban offensive is forcing some countries to close consulates in Afghanistan, while some Afghan fighters are fleeing across the border into other countries, according to The Associated Press.
After taking over the Islam Qala border crossing with #Iran, Taliban forces took down Afghanistan’s flag that had been flying atop the customs office. pic.twitter.com/3l64mW6yUY
— Kian Sharifi (@KianSharifi) July 8, 2021
An Afghan official reportedly confirmed that the Taliban gained control of the Islam Qala crossing, and a Taliban spokesman repeated the claim on Twitter. Islam Qala is a major transit route between Iran and Afghanistan, located just 75 miles west of the provincial capital of Herat, according to the AP.
The Taliban have surged across the country in recent weeks as the United States nears the completion of its withdrawal of troops from the country. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced Thursday morning the United Kingdom would also be fully withdrawing from Afghanistan after a two-decade war effort. (RELATED: Joe Biden Refuses To Answer Further Questions About Afghanistan In Testy Exchange With Reporters)
A number of Afghan soldiers have fled across the border into Tajikistan after the Taliban seized a border crossing with that country. Taliban militants now control about one-third of all the districts in Afghanistan, according to the AP.