Afghan Commander Ismail Khan Captured as Taliban Seize Herat

Afghan Commander Ismail Khan Captured as Taliban Seize Herat
Ismail Khan, a veteran local commander leading militia resistance in Herat, Afghanistan, speaks to a Taliban media arm while in their custody, in this screen grab taken from an undated video from social media uploaded on Aug. 13, 2021. Taliban Handout/via Reuters
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KABUL—Taliban insurgents have seized most of Herat, Afghanistan’s third-largest city, and also captured Ismail Khan, the veteran local commander leading militia resistance there, local officials said on Friday.

The fall of Herat, the latest in a series of major provincial cities to be taken by the Taliban in the past few days, has dealt a shocking blow to the government of President Ashraf Ghani only weeks after the withdrawal of U.S. forces.