If the "Valley of the Lions" falls... PHOTO / VIDEO

If the "Valley of the Lions" falls... PHOTO / VIDEO

Although both sides say they want a solution through negotiations, there is no progress when it comes to the fate of that strategic area, which is the biggest point of resistance to the Taliban who took control of Afghanistan.

Fighters made up of members of the anti-Taliban militia and former Afghan security forces have vowed to fight the Taliban who have sent their fighters to surround the area also known as the "Valley of the Lions".

Why is the Panjshir Valley important?

Panjshir is a narrow valley deep in the Hindu Kush mountains, and the southern part of that valley is about 80 kilometers north of Kabul. Geographically, it has a limited number of entry points, so it provides a natural military advantage because defensive units can use positions on hills to repel attackers.

It is also of great symbolic importance in Afghanistan as an area that has resisted the occupation of invaders for more than a hundred years. The most respected person in Panjshir is Ahmad Shah Masood, a guerrilla commander whose face adorns murals not only in the valley but much further afield in many Afghan cities.

Known as the Lion of Panjshir, Masood became famous by leading the mujahideen in the fight against the Soviet army in the 1980s. The Soviet Union launched multiple campaigns with thousands of soldiers, attacked with helicopters and tanks, but could not defeat it in one of the bloodiest battles in the conflict.

Masood repeated that achievement in the late 1990s when the Taliban took power over most of Afghanistan. The Taliban could not capture the valley, and Masood's forces inflicted some of the heaviest defeats on them at the time.

Two days before the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, killers sent by Al Qaeda, an ally of the Taliban, killed Masood. Posing as the cameramen of the documentary, they sat down to interview him and then activated the explosive hidden in the camera and the battery bag.

Today's anti-Taliban fighters are members of local militias as well as former members of the security forces who came to the valley when the rest of the country fell into the hands of the Taliban. They brought their equipment, vehicles and weapons with them, which will help the National Resistance Front (NRF), led by the son of the famous Masood.

His group promised to resist all Taliban attacks, but admitted in an article for the Washington Post that he would need foreign help.

How did the Taliban react?

The Taliban sent hundreds of fighters into the area surrounding Panjshir in an attempt to organize a siege and force resistance fighters to surrender.

Despite the escalation, a Taliban spokesman said he would rather resolve the situation peacefully.

The Taliban claim to monitor at least three zones around Panjshir, and former Afghan Vice President Saleh announced on Twitter that a humanitarian crisis is developing because the supply of food and fuel has been interrupted.

And while the NRF promises to resist any attack, it is not known if they have enough food, supplies and weapons to withstand the long siege.