The Taliban has taken complete control of Afghanistan’s Panjshir province

It’s the last area in Afghanistan held by resistance forces according to a Taliban spokesperson.

The National Resistance Front known as NRF – the anti-Taliban forces in Panjshir Valley, pledged to carry on fighting.

The NRF stated that the group was and remains present in “strategic positions” across the valley, adding “the struggle against the Taliban and their partners will continue”.

According to reports, the NRF acknowledged “suffering considerable battlefield losses” and called for a ceasefire.

It came as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken flew to Qatar to try and handle the chaotic aftermath left by the US withdrawal from Afghanistan.

The NRF group proposed in a statement “that the Taliban stop its military operations in Panjshir … and withdraw its forces”.

“In return, we will direct our forces to refrain from military action,” said the statement.

Who is the NRF?

The NRF is an anti-Taliban group made up of local fighters that are loyal to Ahmed Massoud – the son of the famous anti-Soviet and anti-Taliban commander Ahmad Shah Massoud.

The group also includes remnants of the Afghan military that retreated to the Panjshir Valley which is located about 125km north of the capital, Kabul.