At least 17 people were killed and 41 injured, including children, in and around Kabul due to the Taliban's celebratory aerial gunfire on Friday night, according to local Afghan news agency Asvaka.
Heavy celebratory gunfire was heard across Kabul on Friday after the Taliban claimed that they have taken control of the Panjshir valley and defeated the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan (NRFA). In photos and videos shared on social media, people were seen taking their wounded relatives to the hospital.
"By the grace of Allah Almighty, we are in control of entire Afghanistan. The troublemakers have been defeated and Panjshir is now under our command," Reuters quoted one Taliban commander as saying.
The Emergency Hospital in Kabul said that at least 17 bodies and 41 wounded people were transferred to its facility because of harm caused by last night’s city-wide aerial firing. Injured and dead were also brought from the bordering Nangarhar province.
However, Ahmad Massoud, leader of the resistance forces in Panjshir, said that the news of the Panshir conquest was false. "News of Panjshir conquests is circulating on Pakistani media. This is a lie. Conquering Panjshir will be my last day in Panjshir, inshallah," he said in a tweet.