Fleeing fighting in north, Afghans crowd into Kabul's parks

Tens of thousands have fled their homes in northern Afghanistan in recent days to escape fighting

KABUL, Afghanistan -- Tens of thousands of people have fled their homes in northern Afghanistan to escape battles that have overwhelmed their towns and villages as government forces try to fend off rapidly advancing Taliban forces. Families have flowed into the capital, Kabul, living in parks and streets with little food or water. Families described on Tuesday bombardment, gunfire and airstrikes pounding their neighborhoods in multiple parts of the north, with civilians caught in the crossfire. Some said that as the Taliban captured towns, they hunted down and killed male relatives of members of the police forces and quickly started imposing new restrictions on women. Such atrocities have fueled alarm over a potential Taliban takeover of Afghanistan as the insurgents accelerate their advance capturing main cities for the first time in recent weeks. But some of those who fled were equally furious at the government. Fawzia Karimi fled to Kabul from Kunduz, one of Afghanistan’s largest cities, where the Taliban have been advancing through neighborhoods. She said government forces didn’t fight when the insurgents overran her district, but were bombing the residential area now that it was in Taliban hands.