Local residents in Afghanistan’s northern city of Kunduz say fighting still continues by the Afghan troops and US-led forces to push back Taliban militants from several areas in the city, despite earlier reports that the area had been retaken from the militants.

Locals told AFP that Afghan troops have recaptured the city center only and that fighting continues in other areas still controlled by the Taliban.

Clashes raged and street battles continued between Afghan troops and the Taliban militants in the early hours of Friday, according to the residents of Kunduz.

The streets are still littered with bodies as well as charred and mangled vehicles, witnesses said.

Government narrative

The developments come despite earlier claims by senior Afghan officials that the military had recaptured the volatile city from the Taliban.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on Thursday hailed the country’s armed forces for retaking Kunduz. Afghanistan’s Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah also said that “the city as a whole has been liberated.”

Meanwhile, the Taliban have sent mixed messages concerning the battle.

Zabihullah Mujahid, a Taliban spokesman, said that militants were holding their ground in the volatile city. However, some militant sources have admitted that the Taliban were conducting a retreat from Kunduz.

The militants overran the city on September 28 after entering Kunduz Province where it is located from three directions. Officials confirmed back then that the Taliban had stormed government buildings and taken over a state-run hospital.

Afghan officials say the militants also freed hundreds of prisoners, including Taliban commanders.

Kunduz Province is strategic as it is located on a crossroads that connects key regions of the country. It is also located along the country’s border with Tajikistan and could offer the militants the opportunity to establish a base in the country’s north.

Taliban ‘shot down US plane’

Meanwhile, Mujahid, the Taliban spokesman, claimed on Friday that the militants had shot down a military transport aircraft operated by the US military in eastern Afghanistan.

“Our mujahideen have shot down a four-engine US aircraft in Jalalabad,” Mujahid said on Twitter.

The four-engine turboprop Lockheed C-130 Hercules plane went down at Jalalabad Airport, located approximately 150 kilometers (93 miles) east of the capital, Kabul, at about midnight local time on Friday morning (1930 GMT Thursday).

The US military has confirmed that six American soldiers serving with NATO were killed in the accident. Five contractors working for the NATO-led Resolute Support mission also died.

An investigation is under way to determine the circumstances surrounding the incident.