Police spokesman Mahfozullah Akbari said security forces were preparing an operation to drive out the fighters, who had set up in the Khak Kani area in the southwest of the city.
“The Taliban are inside some civilian houses and we have to carry out operations very carefully,” he said.
A statement from the interior ministry said reinforcements were being sent to the city.
Monday’s attack, a day before the start of a major donor conference in Brussels, underlines the precarious security situation in Afghanistan, where government forces are estimated to have control over no more than two thirds of the country.
“A massive operation started on Kunduz capital from four directions early this morning,” Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said in his official Twitter account.
He said the Nawabad area with four checkpoints had been captured and a number of soldiers had been killed. It was not immediately possible to verify the claim.
A Reuters reporter saw at least five Taliban fighters armed with AK-47 assault rifles, machines guns and rocket-propelled grenades in the city. He saw fighters entering the houses of residents and taking up position on rooftops.
(Sourced from agencies, feature image courtesy:oneindia.com)
