?A man looks on in a burnt building in Ghazni city, capital of Ghazni province, Afghanistan, Aug. 14, 2018. Peace and normalcy returned to Afghan eastern city of Ghazni after government forces launched a massive operation supported by war planes and helicopters, a statement said Wednesday. (Xinhua/Sayed Mominzadah)?
by Farid Behbud
KABUL, Aug. 15 (Xinhua) -- Peace and normalcy returned to Afghan eastern city of Ghazni after government forces launched a massive operation supported by war planes and helicopters, a statement said Wednesday.
"People in Ghazni city regained their normal life, following deadly clearance operation launched by security and defense forces on the terrorist outfit of Taliban, swiping Haidar Abad, Hassan Abad, Mughulan and Naw Abad areas from insurgents, in the provincial capital," said the statement from Afghan Ministry of Defence.
On early Friday, Taliban militants launched a coordinated attack and overran the city which is capital of eastern Ghanzi province, triggering heavy clashes lasting for five straight days.
However, some neighborhoods were still deserted as sporadic clashes were ongoing particularly in outer sides of the city.
The militants set on fire scores of government offices, houses and shops.
About 150 civilians were killed or injured in the clashes while around 150 security forces and 500 Taliban militants also lost their lives.
"The Taliban's attack against Ghazni city, and the subsequent fighting in densely-populated urban spaces, has again caused terrible suffering to civilians caught in the conflict. Equally unacceptable, the fight for the city of Ghazni has exacerbated deep-rooted wounds dividing Afghan communities at a time when cohesion is more crucial than ever before," Tadamichi Yamamoto, special UN envoy and head of UN mission, was quoted in a UNAMA statement Wednesday.
"The Taliban attack and seizure of the city was a disaster, I lost everything, I am a shop owner and I lost all my goods as a main business market in downtown was burned by the militants and the shops and its goods have changed into a pile of ash," resident Mohammad Karim, 42, told Xinhua.
He blamed the local officials for failing to respond to people's demand after the militants set fire on the market and no fire squad of the city municipality was sent to the area after shop owners frequently requested.
"Reports also indicate that the situation in Ghazni for non-combatants remains particularly grim, as the fighting has led to electricity outages along with water and food shortages. Communication networks and media outlets have been shuttered, and roads remain blocked, preventing freedom of movement for families seeking safety," the UN mission or UANANA said in the statement.
Humanitarian actors ready and willing to supply desperately needed assistance must be given explicit, public and absolute guarantees by all parties to the conflict that they will be allowed to operate safely, without hindrance or any attempts to interfere with distribution carried out under humanitarian principles, the statement said.
"The people in Ghazni are in urgent need of assistance. We want the government to compensate the shop owners as we lost all of our assets," resident Karim said.
The first humanitarian aid trucks arriving in Ghazni city late Tuesday were carrying coffins but scores of injured in Ghazni regional hospital are in need of medication and health supplies, resident Zekria told Xinhua, adding that Taliban militants used civilians as human shield and they fire on security forces and war planes from houses and none-military buildings.
"The extreme human suffering caused by the fighting in Ghazni highlights the urgent need for the war in Afghanistan to end. The United Nations continues to maintain that there can be no military solution to the conflict in Afghanistan," UN envoy Tadamichi Yamamoto added.
"The Afghan government has extended an unprecedented overture to talk with the Taliban rather than to fight. The most recent Eid ceasefire on 15-17 June illustrated to all Afghans, especially those too young to have known anything but war, what peace looks like. It is therefore vital for this war to come to an end through an Afghan-led negotiated settlement," he noted.
The fighting in Ghazni must stop and the fighting in Afghanistan must stop. Confidence-building steps that immediately reduce violence are crucial, and talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban are necessary to identify and expand common ground. The United Nations stands ready to support any endeavours that would advance peace in Afghanistan, he said.
A main roadway, connecting Kabul to southern and western provinces and passes from outskirts of Ghazni city, was blocked after the fighting started, causing scores of passenger buses and transport trucks to be stranded since early Friday.
"We assure the population in Ghazni that ANDSF stands with them protecting their lives and properties. We are in control of the city and will drive Taliban and terrorists from other areas of the province soon," said Defense Ministry spokesman Sayyed Ghafor Ahmad Javeed in a statement issued by the Government Media and Information Center.
"Five city Police Districts in Ghazni city are operational. Clearance operation is ongoing in Police District 6. Afghan National Defense and Security Forces is clearing areas in north and west of Ghazni in the vicinity of Haydarabad. Firefighters are in Ghazni to provide services and help the people. Local mobile phone company Roshan Telecom towers are operational again," the government statement added.
