The Afghan Taliban on Tuesday said they were launching new operations after the end of Ramadan, dismissing reports that they had been weakened following a change of leadership in May.
Afghan government and NATO officials said government forces had had growing success against the Taliban since U.S.
commanders were granted more freedom to conduct air strikes and other operations against the insurgents.
They have also pointed to apparent leadership problems within the Taliban since former leader, Mullah Mohammad Mansour, was killed in a U.S. drone strike and replaced by the hardline cleric, Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada.
The Taliban’s chief spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, said that reports of a reduction in insurgent operations during Ramadan reflected a natural slowdown during one of the hottest periods of the year.
According to Mujahid, Ramadan is when Muslims are required not to eat or drink during daylight hours.
“But, the commanders of the American occupation forces and the puppet figures in Kabul got the wrong impression from this situation.
“They think that Mujahideen have been weakened or are facing problems due to the change in leadership,’’ he said.
The insurgents, who are seeking to force the NATO-led coalition out of Afghanistan and bring in Islamic law, were moving on to the offensive and had seized three district centres in the past 24 hours.
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