NATO moves against Taliban-held town

KABUL, Afghanistan, Dec. 8 (UPI) -- NATO forces and Afghan soldiers launched an offensive Friday against a town in Afghanistan that has become a Taliban stronghold.

Niamat Jan, who owns a shop in Musa Qala, told The New York Times that entrances to the town were blocked and bombs had been dropped.

"We are in great fear," he said. "The people moved out of the town and scattered elsewhere. Most of the families have moved to the desert and settled there. The town has been completely evacuated."

The Taliban, which has made a comeback in the past two years, took control of Musa Qala, in Helmand Province in southern Afghanistan, in February. Taliban leaders dismissed the council of elders who had made an agreement with the British to bar Taliban fighters from the town.

Musa Qala is the only town in Afghanistan held by the Taliban.

U.S. troops were to carry out an offensive during the night, the BBC reported.