Afghanistan's Helmand province may fall to Taliban, official says

Afghanistan's southern province of Helmand is on the verge of falling to the Taliban, with 90 soldiers killed in fierce clashes, its deputy governor said Sunday, imploring Kabul for intervention in an unusual Facebook post.

 

Clashes between insurgents and government forces have intensified in several key districts of Helmand, fuelling concern that the opium-rich province is on the brink of a security collapse.

 

The fall of Helmand would deal another stinging blow to the country's NATO-backed forces as they struggle to rein in the ascendant insurgency.