Taliban storms Kandahar prison, Lashkar Gah police HQ falls: Live

Armed group also claims it has captured 10th provincial capital of Ghazni, but government insists it remains in control.

Afghan government forces continue to battle Taliban fighters in and around several cities as the armed group presses on with its offensive that US intelligence believes could see it take over capital Kabul within 90 days. Fighting is raging in Lashkar Gah, one of Afghanistan’s largest cities in the Taliban heartland of Helmand province, where surrounded government forces hope to hold onto the capital after the Taliban’s weeklong blitz has seen it already seize nine others around the country. The Lashkar Gah regional police headquarters were taken by the armed group, with some police officers surrendering to the fighters and others retreating to the nearby governor’s office still held by government forces.