Battle of Darzab (2017)

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Battle of Darzab
Part of the
War on Terror
Date9 April – 27 April 2017
Location
Darzab District and surrounding districts, Jowzjan Province, Afghanistan
Result

ISIL victory

Belligerents

 Islamic State

  • Khorasan Province
Taliban  Afghanistan
Commanders and leaders
Mufti Nemat[1]
Islamic State Mullah Ghanzanfar (WIA
)
Faiz Mohammad 
Sheikh Hamidullah 
Shahzada Mazlomyar 
Mohibullah 
Haji Nokur (POW)
Afghanistan Abdul Rashid Dostum[1]
Afghanistan Col. Abdull Hafiz Khashi[2]
Afghanistan Mohammad Reza Ghafori[3]
Afghanistan Brig. Gen. Rahmatullah Turkistani [4]
Afghanistan Rahmatullah Husher
Units involved
Qari Hekmat's network[1]
Mufti Nemat's militia[1]
Unknown

Security Forces

Strength
Unknown Unknown Hundreds[1]
Casualties and losses
15 killed, 22 wounded 93 killed, 58 wounded, and 63 captured (including drug dealers) 4 killed
1 civilian killed

The Battle of Darzab was to an armed conflict between

Wilayat Khorasan
and soldiers of Afghan armed forces in Darzab District of Jowzjan province.

First attacks

On 9 April, four Afghan soldiers, including a unit commander, were killed in an ambush as they raced to the scene of the recent clashes in Darzab by ISIL fighters.[5][6] One day after, Taliban, alongside ISIL fighters attacked Alkhani and Moghol villages of Darzab district, leaving 13 Taliban fighters dead, and 10 ISIL fighters wounded, including ISIL commander Mullah Ghanzanfar. Taliban managed to capture Alkhani, but repelled in Moghol. Separately, a Taliban commander, Faiz Mohammad was killed and one of his fighters wounded when they stormed a security post in Qush Tepa District near Darzab. A civilian woman was also killed when a militant rocket struck a home on the outskirts of the district.[7]

Fighting between Taliban and ISIL

On 26 April, ISIL kidnapped 3 drug dealers in Darzab that were to have an opium deal with the Taliban. Taliban repeatedly asked ISIL to release the captives, but the later refused, leading the Taliban to gather forces in Darzab. After that, ISIL attacked the Taliban killing 79 Taliban fighters, wounding another 57, and capturing another 60. Among the dead Taliban fighters were three commanders, Sheikh Hamidullah, the Taliban district chief for Qush Tapa district and Tawakkal, Shahzada Mazlomyar, and Mohibullah. One Taliban commander was also among the captured, named Haji Nokur. Also, 15 ISIL fighter killed, and 12 wounded. ISIL captured most of Darzab from Taliban, along with Qush Tapa during the fighting.[8][9][10][11]

Aftermath