Afghan forces crumbling as Taliban advance

The Afghan president has condemned the hasty withdrawal of US forces from his country for the intensified violence, as advancing Taliban fighters continue to seize ground.

Elite Afghan commando units have now been deployed to Helmand, where the Taliban is battling to take control of the provincial capital Lashkar Gah.

Aid workers there have described “relentless gunfire, airstrikes and mortar” in civilian areas, with residents in fear for their lives.