Several hundred men gathered on the main street a few miles north of the Afghan capital with old rifles after a government call to action that has spread across the country. Militia members and armed citizens in more than a dozen provinces have joined Afghan security forces battling the Taliban in less than a week.
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani meets with President Biden and members of Congress this week while his country is facing a surge in Taliban attacks. The defense forces have not been able to stem the offensive. Afghan officials are concerned that the pull out of US troops by September will leave the country vulnerable to the Taliban. The call for able-bodied Afghans to join the fight may partly be a way to show the strong public support for the anti-Taliban cause and that the movement deserves more help.
Read more: The Taliban’s offensive is prompting Afghans to join the fight: ‘We need to defend our lands’
