Battle of Darzab (2018): Difference between revisions

| conflict = Battle of Darzab

| width =

| partof = the [[War in Afghanistan (2001–present2001–2021)]]<br />[[War on Terror]]<br />[[Islamic State–Taliban conflict]]

| image = Surrendered Islamic State fighters in Darzab 1.png

| alt = ISIL-KKP militants with their former weapons in custody after the battle

| caption = Islamic State fighters who have surrendered to the government at the battle's end

| date = 12 July – 1 August 2018<br />({{Age in years, months, weeks and days|month1=07|day1=12|year1=2018|month2=08|day2=1|year2=2018}})

| place = [[Darzab District]] and surrounding districts, [[Afghanistan]]

| territory = Taliban capture Darzab District

| result = Major Taliban victory

| combatant1 = {{flagicon imageflagdeco|Afghanistan|Flag of Taliban.svg}} [[Taliban]]

| combatant2 = {{flag|Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant}}

* [[Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant – Khorasan Province|Khorasan Province]]

{{flag|Islamic Republic of Afghanistan}} {{small|(airstrikes on the Taliban, 30–31 July)}}<ref name="surge"/>

| commander1 = {{flagicon imageflagdeco|Afghanistan|Flag of Taliban.svg}} Mullah Burjan{{Executed}}<ref name="250 dead"/><br />{{flagicon image|Flag of Taliban.svg}} Haji Shakir{{KIA}}<ref name="takes on"/>

| commander2 = {{flagiconflagdeco|ISIL}} Mawlavi Habibul Rahman{{Surrendered}}<br />{{flagiconflagdeco|ISIL}} [[Nemat (militant)|Mufti Nemat]]{{Surrendered}}<br />{{flagiconflagdeco|ISIL}} "Sibghatullah"{{Surrendered}}<ref name="defeated"/><br />{{flagiconflagdeco|ISIL}} Haji Murad{{KIA}}<ref name="senior"/>

| units1 = Several contingents

* [[Red GroupUnit]]

| units2 = [[Qari Hekmat]]'s network<ref name="foreign"/>

| strength1 = {{circa}} |2,000}} {{small|(ISIL-KKP claim)}}<ref name="surge"/>

| strength2 = 600–700 {{small|(Afghan gov. estimate)}}<ref name="leaves"/>

| casualties1 = Disputed; probably heavy{{efn|name=losses|Accounts differ widely on how many losses the Taliban and ISIL-KKP suffered during the campaign. By 18 July, the spokesman of Jowzjan Province's governor claimed that the Taliban had suffered 70 killed and 100 wounded, while ISIL-KKP had suffered 52 killed, and 33 wounded overall. A local civilian, on the other side, claimed that 200 fighters had been killed on both sides on 17 July alone.<ref name="250 dead"/> Furthermore, the Taliban stated that they had killed 153, wounded over 100, and captured 134 ISIL-KKP militants during their final operation of late July, while suffering just 17 dead and 13 wounded.<ref name="defeated"/> In contrast, ISIL-KKP leader Mufti Nemat claimed that just 40 of his followers had died during the campaign.<ref name="surge"/> According to the ''[[FDD's Long War Journal]]'', the claims and estimates of government representatives, Taliban, ISIL-KKP, and local civilians are generally questionable.<ref name="defeated"/><ref name="northern"/> A [[Jamestown Foundation]] expert said that about 300 militants were killed overall during the battleBattle of Darzab.<ref name="takes on"/> }}

| casualties2 = Disputed; probably heavy{{efn|name=losses}}

| casualties3 = Several civilians killed,<ref name="250 dead"/> 3,500–7,000 displaced<ref name="flee"/>

| notes =

| campaignbox = {{Campaignbox War in Afghanistan (2015–present2001–2021)}}

The '''Battle of Darzab''' (12 July–1July – 1 August 2018) was a major conflict between the [[Taliban]] and the [[Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant|Islamic State]]'s [[Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant – Khorasan Province|Khorasan Province]] (ISIL-KISIS–K) who fought each other over control of [[Jowzjan Province]]'s [[Darzab District]] in [[Afghanistan]]. Following heavy clashes, ISIL-KISIS–K was defeated, with most of the group's forces in Jowzjan Province killed or captured.

Despite both being opposed to the Afghan[[Islamic governmentRepublic of Afghanistan]] and its [[Resolute Support Mission|Western allies]], the [[Taliban]] and the [[Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant]] are fierce rivals who fighthave fought each other since 2015.<ref name="surge">{{cite webnews |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/01/world/asia/afghanistan-taliban-isis.html |title=Taliban Surge Routs ISIS in Northern Afghanistan |author1last1=Najim Rahim |author2first1=RodNajim |last2=Nordland |first2=Rod |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=1 August 2018 |accessdateaccess-date=13 August 2018 |archive-date=14 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180814003419/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/01/world/asia/afghanistan-taliban-isis.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="surrender">{{cite webnews |url=https://www.voanews.com/a/is-fighters-surrender-to-afghan-forces-after-taliban-assault/4508748.html |title=IS Fighters Surrender to Afghan Forces After Taliban Assault |authoragency=[[Associated Press]] |work=[[Voice of America]] |date=1 August 2018 |accessdateaccess-date=13 August 2018 |archive-date=10 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190610052513/https://www.voanews.com/a/is-fighters-surrender-to-afghan-forces-after-taliban-assault/4508748.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The Islamic State's Afghan branch, namely the so-called "[[Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant – Khorasan Province|Khorasan Province]]" (often abbreviated ISIL-KKP), has extensively recruited disaffected ex-Taliban,<ref name="defeated">{{cite webnews |url=https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2018/08/taliban-says-islamic-state-is-completely-defeated-in-jawzjan.php |title=Taliban says Islamic State has been 'completely defeated' in Jawzjan |authorlast=Bill Roggio |first=Bill |work=[[FDD's Long War Journal]] |date=1 August 2018 |accessdateaccess-date=9 August 2018 |archive-date=13 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180813043310/https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2018/08/taliban-says-islamic-state-is-completely-defeated-in-jawzjan.php |url-status=live }}</ref> and its mere presence threatens the Taliban's claim to be "the only legitimate opposition" in Afghanistan.<ref name="northern">{{cite webnews |url=https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2018/07/taliban-islamic-state-continue-battle-in-northern-afghanistan.php |title=Taliban, Islamic State continue battle in northern Afghanistan |author1last1=Bill Roggio |author2first1=CalebBill |last2=Weiss |first2=Caleb |work=[[FDD's Long War Journal]] |date=18 July 2018 |accessdateaccess-date=13 August 2018 |archive-date=14 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180814002111/https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2018/07/taliban-islamic-state-continue-battle-in-northern-afghanistan.php |url-status=live }}</ref> One of the [[Theater (warfare)|theaters]] where the two insurgent groups have repeatedly clashed is the country's north, most importantly the provinces of [[Jowzjan Province|Jowzjan]], [[Sar-e Pol Province|Sar-e Pol]], and [[Faryab Province|Faryab]].<ref name="defeated"/><ref name="northern"/>

The forces of ISIL-KKP in northern Afghanistan consist of local Taliban defectors,<ref name="defeated"/> and an extensive number of foreign [[mujahideen]] including [[Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan]] militants. The power of ISIL-KKP in the north was further boosted by the defection of [[Uzbeks|Uzbek]] Taliban commander [[Qari Hekmat]] and his followers.<ref name="northern"/> Hekmat became the leading commander of the Islamic State in northern Afghanistan, and used his large foreign network to recruit fighters from [[Central Asia]] and to smuggle them into Jowzjan, which had been a "major hub" for various insurgent groups even before the [[Taliban insurgency]]'s beginning.<ref name="Hekmat">{{cite webnews |url=https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2018/04/us-military-kills-senior-islamic-state-commander-in-afghan-north.php |title=US military kills senior Islamic State commander in Afghan north |authorlast=Bill Roggio |first=Bill |work=[[FDD's Long War Journal]] |date=9 April 2018 |accessdateaccess-date=13 August 2018 |archive-date=14 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180814002005/https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2018/04/us-military-kills-senior-islamic-state-commander-in-afghan-north.php |url-status=live }}</ref> In course of 2017, the Islamic State [[Battle of Darzab (2017)|captured most]] of [[Darzab District]] in Jowzjan, and transformed it into its local stronghold. The Taliban subsequently launched at least three major offensives to oust ISIL-KKP from Darzab, but all failed.<ref name="takes on">{{cite webjournal |url=https://jamestown.org/program/the-taliban-takes-on-islamic-state-insurgents-vie-for-control-of-northern-afghanistan/ |title=The Taliban Takes on Islamic State: Insurgents Vie for Control of Northern Afghanistan |authorlast=Rahmani |first=Waliullah Rahmani|journal=Terrorism Monitor |workpublisher=[[Jamestown Foundation]] |volume=16 |issue=16 |date=10 August 2018 |accessdateaccess-date=15 August 2018 |archive-date=15 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180815131601/https://jamestown.org/program/the-taliban-takes-on-islamic-state-insurgents-vie-for-control-of-northern-afghanistan/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Meanwhile, however, the US military and the Afghan government increasingly targeted Hekmat's network. Hekmat himself was killed in ana US airstrike in April 2018, weakening ISIL-KKP in the north. Hekmat was succeeded by Mawlavi Habibul Rahman,<ref name="Hekmat"/> while Mawlavi's brother-in-law [[Nemat (militant)|Mufti Nemat]]<ref name="surge"/> became second-in-command for Jowzjan Province.<ref name="rape">{{cite webnews |url=https://www.voanews.com/a/is-commander-accused-of-rape-surrenders-to-authoritie/4516044.html |title=Islamic State Commander Accused of Rape Surrenders |authorlast=Mohammad Habibzada |first=Mohammad |work=[[Voice of America]] |date=6 August 2018 |accessdateaccess-date=13 August 2018 |archive-date=14 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180814001829/https://www.voanews.com/a/is-commander-accused-of-rape-surrenders-to-authoritie/4516044.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Despite Hekmat's death, several foreign fighters recruited by him remained in Darzab, including Uzbeks, [[Tajiks]], [[Kazakhs]], [[Kyrgyz people|Kyrgyz]], [[Indonesians]], [[Chechens]], [[Pakistanis]], [[TurkeyTurkish people|Turks]], and [[French people|French]].<ref name="takes on"/><ref name="foreign">{{cite webnews |url=https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2018/08/foreign-islamic-state-fighters-captured-by-taliban-in-jawzjan.php |title=Foreign Islamic State fighters captured by Taliban in Jawzjan |authorlast=Caleb Weiss |first=Caleb |work=[[FDD's Long War Journal]] |date=4 August 2018 |accessdateaccess-date=9 August 2018 |archive-date=4 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180804113629/https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2018/08/foreign-islamic-state-fighters-captured-by-taliban-in-jawzjan.php |url-status=live }}</ref>

Hostilities between ISIL-KKP and the Taliban intensified in early July 2018, after Islamic State fighters seized a Taliban-held village in Darzab District, and beheaded ten Taliban members they had captured there. In response, Taliban forces launched counter-attacks against ISIL-KKP positions in three districts of Jowzjan, including Darzab and [[Qush Tepa District|Qush Tepa]], on 12 July.<ref name="northern"/> Fighting also spread to Faryab<ref name="takes on"/> and Sar-e Pol,<ref name="northern"/> where Islamic State militants killed Haji Shakir, the Taliban leader in [[Sancharak District|Sancharak]].<ref name="takes on"/> On 15 July, ISIL-KKP captured Taliban commander Mullah Burjan in the village of Bibi Maryam, Darzab. His execution three days later<ref name="250 dead">{{cite webnews |url=https://www.pajhwok.com/en/2018/07/18/jawzjan-250-dead-ongoing-taliban-daesh-clashes |title=Jawzjan: 250 dead in ongoing Taliban-Daesh clashes |authorlast=Hamid Tamkin |first=Hamid |work=[[Pajhwok Afghan News]] |date=18 July 2018 |accessdateaccess-date=13 August 2018 |archive-date=1 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181001202221/https://www.pajhwok.com/en/2018/07/18/jawzjan-250-dead-ongoing-taliban-daesh-clashes |url-status=live }}</ref> caused a further intensification of the clashes.<ref name="northern"/> By 18 July, a Taliban source claimed that fighting in Darzab District was restricted to the villages of Aqsai, Qara Yorth, Qarighach, and Tash Jawaz, while ISIL-KKP had been allegedly been ousted from Kumarlik, Bibi Mariam and Aqblaq.<ref name="250 dead"/>

[[File:Mufti Nematullah.png|thumb|left|[[Nemat (militant)|Mufti Nemat]], second-in-command of [[Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant – Khorasan Province|ISIL-KKP]] for [[Jowzjan Province]] ]]

Sometime in mid-July, the Taliban launched a major offensive to fully evict ISIL-KKP from Jowzjan Province.<ref name="defeated"/> Islamic State commander Mawlavi Habibul Rahman later claimed that the Taliban had amassed 2,000 fighters in Jowzjan from various areas, including [[Helmand Province]], for this operation.<ref name="surge"/> Employing their elite/special forces, the [[Red GroupUnit]],<ref name="defeated"/> the Taliban attacked the Islamic State's stronghold<ref name="surge"/> of Darzab from three sides simultaneously.<ref name="defeated"/> By this time, Darzab was held by about 600 to 700 ISIL-KKP fighters according to estimates of the Afghan government.<ref name="leaves">{{cite webnews |url=http://www.gulf-times.com/story/600035/IS-Taliban-infighting-leaves-over-120-dead-in-nort |title=IS, Taliban infighting leaves over 120 dead in northern Afghanistan |author= |work=[[Gulf Times]] |agency=[[Deutsche Presse-Agentur]] |date=19 July 2018 |accessdateaccess-date=13 August 2018 |archive-date=12 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180812191816/http://www.gulf-times.com/story/600035/IS-Taliban-infighting-leaves-over-120-dead-in-nort |url-status=live }}</ref> On 22 July, the Taliban overran ISIL-KKP at the villages of Mughal and Sardara, Darzab, where they killed Haji Murad (also known as Haji Qumandan), the Islamic State's deputy commander for Jowzjan.<ref name="senior">{{cite webnews |url=https://www.pajhwok.com/en/2018/07/23/jawzjan-senior-daesh-leader-killed-taliban-attack |title=Jawzjan: Senior Daesh leader killed in Taliban attack |authorlast=Hamid Tamkin |first=Hamid |work=[[Pajhwok Afghan News]] |date=23 July 2018 |accessdateaccess-date=13 August 2018 |archive-date=14 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180814035926/https://www.pajhwok.com/en/2018/07/23/jawzjan-senior-daesh-leader-killed-taliban-attack |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="takes on"/> In course of heavy combat, the Taliban reportedly inflicted hundreds of casualties on ISIL-KKP,{{efn|name=losses}} and captured much war [[materiel]].<ref name="defeated"/> By 20 July, 3,500 to 7,000 civilians had been displaced by the fighting.<ref name="flee">{{cite webnews |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-afghanistan-taliban-islamic-state/families-flee-as-taliban-battle-islamic-state-in-northern-afghanistan-idUSKBN1KA231 |title=Families flee as Taliban battle Islamic State in northern Afghanistan |authorlast=Matin Sahak |first=Matin |work=[[Reuters]] |date=20 July 2018 |accessdateaccess-date=13 August 2018 |archive-date=14 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180814001903/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-afghanistan-taliban-islamic-state/families-flee-as-taliban-battle-islamic-state-in-northern-afghanistan-idUSKBN1KA231 |url-status=live }}</ref>

By 30 July, ISIL-KKP was reduced to just two villages in Darzab, whereupon its leaders Mawlavi Habibul Rahman and Mufti Nemat decided to contact the Afghan government;<ref name="surge"/> they subsequently agreed to surrender in exchange for protection from the Taliban.<ref name="surge"/><ref name="defeated"/><ref name="rescuing">{{cite webnews |url=https://www.voanews.com/a/afghan-government-under-fire-for-rescuing-islamic-state-militants/4515574.html |title=Afghan Government Under Fire for Rescuing Islamic State Militants |authorlast=Ayaz Gul |first=Ayaz |work=[[Voice of America]] |date=6 August 2018 |accessdateaccess-date=13 August 2018 |archive-date=14 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180814041346/https://www.voanews.com/a/afghan-government-under-fire-for-rescuing-islamic-state-militants/4515574.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[Afghan Air Force]] then started to bombard Taliban positions to prevent them from capturing the remaining Islamic State forces and to ensure their surrender.<ref name="surge"/> Nemat later claimed that the [[Afghan National Army]] had also agreed to evacuate them with helicopters, though this came not to pass; instead, the Islamic State fighters had to reach government-held territories on foot.<ref name="surge"/> About 245 fighters,<ref name="rape"/> alongside their families, subsequently surrendered on 1 August, though some Islamic State fighters had disappeared during the retreat. Nemat later speculated that these militants had possibly defected to the Taliban.<ref name="surge"/> Among those who laid down arms were, besides Mawlavi and Nemat,<ref name="defeated"/><ref name="surrender"/> another commander known as "Sibghatullah",<ref name="defeated"/> about 100 [[Children in the military|child soldiers]],<ref name="guests">{{cite webnews |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/04/world/asia/islamic-state-prisoners-afghanistan.html |title=Are ISIS Fighters Prisoners or Honored Guests of the Afghan Government? |author1last1=Najim Rahim |author2first1=RodNajim |last2=Nordland |first2=Rod |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=4 August 2018 |accessdateaccess-date=19 August 2018 |archive-date=19 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180819042230/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/04/world/asia/islamic-state-prisoners-afghanistan.html |url-status=live }}</ref> and 25 to 30 foreign mujahideen.<ref name="surge"/>

[[File:More Than 240 IS Militants Surrender to Afghan Government Forces.webm|thumb|right|''[[Voice of America]]'' report about the surrender ]]

Following their surrender, the ISIL-KKP fighters were transported with helicopters to Jowzjan Province's center [[Sheberghan]]. At Sheberghan, the Islamic State militants were treated more like guests than prisoners. This caused great resentment among civilians and soldiers alike, as the militants continued to call their guards, officials and journalists "infidels",<ref name="guests"/> and openly "boasted of engaging in acts of extreme barbarism [...], such as beheadings and the use of child soldiers", in interviews with the press. [[Nemat (militant)|Mufti Nemat]] said that he considered to join pro-government forces with his followers; he had already fought for the government once in the past.<ref name="surge"/> Locals of Darzab, however, petitioned Jowzjan's governor to punish the militants for the [[war crimescrime]]s they had committed.<ref name="surge"/><ref name="rape"/><ref name="guests"/> Several women accused [[Mufti Nemat|Nemat]] and his troops of having raped them,<ref name="rape"/> while other locals toldsaid that the Islamic State fighters had executed over one hundred100 civilians, including children, and had practised slavery in [[Darzab District|Darzab]].<ref name="guests"/> The government was consequently widely criticised for "its unexplained action of providing asylum and protection to IS-K militants", prompting officials to declare that the Islamic State fighters would be brought to justice.<ref name="rescuing"/>

The controversial surrender proved to be a "propaganda bonanza" for the Taliban, who contrasted the government's lenient treatment of the ISIL-KKP fighters with their own behavior.<ref name="guests"/> Taliban spokesman [[Zabiullah Mujahid]] declared that the ISIL-KKP fighters who had been captured by the Taliban would be tried in military courts.<ref name="surge"/> The Taliban subsequently released a video showing over a dozen foreign Islamic State fighters who had been captured by them; this video circulated widely on Afghan media, pro-Taliban, and pro-[[al-Qaeda]] channels.<ref name="foreign"/>

Despite claims by both government representatives<ref name="surge"/> and Taliban that this campaign had fully defeated the Islamic State in northern Afghanistan, ISIL-KKP still held a few districts of Jowzjan, Sar-e Pol and Faryab.<ref name="defeated"/>

===U.S.US claims===

U.S.The [[United States Department of Defense]], in its 2018 quarterly report on Afghanistan, claimed the Taliban’sTaliban's victory againstover the [[Daesh|ISIL-K]]KP in Jawzjan over the summerJowzjan as its own. Early on, U.S.the US and Afghan government tried to label the surrender of ISIL-KKP fighterfighters to [[Afghan Armed Forces|Afghan military]] as onea of the '"successful operation'" conducted by the Afghan military. Although the, ISIL-KKP surrendered as a result of defeat at the hands of [[Talibans]]the Taliban.

''[[FDD's Long War Journal]]'' claims that thisthese attempts by U.S.the US military highlightshighlight just how desperate [[U.S.the US military]] iswas to report success in Afghanistan, and how infrequent those successes arewere in reality.<ref name="Long War Journal1">{{cite websitenews|url=https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2018/11/us-military-continues-to-spin-a-taliban-victory-against-islamic-state-as-its-own.php|title=US military continues to spin a Taliban victory against Islamic State as its own|accessdateaccess-date=2 November 2018|publisherlast=Roggio |first=Bill |work=[[FDD's Long War Journal]]|date=2 November 2018 |archive-date=3 November 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181103114900/https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2018/11/us-military-continues-to-spin-a-taliban-victory-against-islamic-state-as-its-own.php|url-status=live}}</ref>

Chinese campCamp was an Afghan armyNational Army base which fell to Taliban control around the time when the [[Ghazni offensive]] was going on. Afghan army soldiers, who were deployed at Chinese campCamp, heavily criticised the [[Afghan army|army]] and the [[Afghan government|government]] for abandoning them. They claimed that the [[Afghan military]] prioritised ferrying [[Daesh|ISIL-K]]KP prisoners in [[helicoptershelicopter]]s over using those helicopters to re-supply the camp. The soldiers asked whether those [[Daesh|ISIL-K]]KP militants were prisoners or honoured guestguests forof the government.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/14/world/asia/the-afghan-armys-last-stand-at-chinese-camp.html|title=The Afghan Army’sArmy's Last Stand at Chinese Camp|accessdateaccess-date=14 August 2018|publisherlast1=Rahim |first1=Najim |last2=Nordland |first2=Rod|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=14 August 2018|archive-date=14 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180814213446/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/14/world/asia/the-afghan-armys-last-stand-at-chinese-camp.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/afghan-military-prioritizes-isis-captives-over-base-that-fell-taliban-2018-8|title=The Afghan military airlifted ISIS captives out rather than re-supply a besieged base — and the Taliban overran it|accessdateaccess-date=15 August 2018|publisherlast=Brown|first=Daniel |work=[[Business Insider]]|date=15 August 2018|archive-date=15 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180815223818/https://www.businessinsider.com/afghan-military-prioritizes-isis-captives-over-base-that-fell-taliban-2018-8|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Long War Journal1"/>

[[Category:2018 in the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)]]

[[Category:BattlesAugust involving2018 Afghanistan|Darzabevents (2018)in Afghanistan]]

[[Category:ConflictsBattles in 2018|Darzab]]

[[Category:Battles ofinvolving the War in Afghanistan (2001–present)Taliban|Darzab (2018)]]

[[Category:MilitaryBattles operations involvingof the IslamicWar Statein ofAfghanistan Iraq and the(2001–2021)|Darzab Levant(2018)]]

[[Category:July 2018 events in AsiaAfghanistan]]

[[Category:AugustBattles 2018involving eventsthe inIslamic AsiaState of Iraq and the Levant]]