Fighting continues in fallen city of Kunduz

The United States continued airstrikes overnight in the Taliban-captured Afghan city of Kunduz, and coalition forces were sent into the city, several media outlets are reporting.

Army Col. Brian Tribus, a spokesman for the U.S. and NATO missions in Afghanistan, told USA Today that “limited coalition forces” are in Kunduz.

And Reuters reported that coalition fighters fought the insurgents, with Tribus saying it was done in self-defense.

The United States carried out airstrikes at about 11:30 p.m. Tuesday and 1 a.m. Wednesday on Taliban positions near Kunduz Airport. That’s on top of the airstrike U.S. forces conducted Tuesday morning.

On Monday, Kunduz fell to the Taliban after months of stalemate. It’s considered the Taliban’s greatest victory since the United States ousted it from power in 2001.

Some lawmakers have pointed to the fall of Kunduz as evidence the United States should stop withdrawing troops from Afghanistan.

“It is time that President Obama abandon this dangerous and arbitrary course and adopt a plan for U.S. troop presence based on conditions on the ground,” Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said in a written statement after news of Kunduz’s fall broke.

But Pentagon and White House officials said Tuesday it’s too early to know how the fighting in Kunduz will affect withdrawal plans.

“At this point, I don’t have any sort of immediate indication this will change the long-term strategy that is in place in Afghanistan,” White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest told reporters onboard Air Force One.

Gen. John Campbell, the top commander in Afghanistan, has reportedly forwarded to the Pentagon and coalition officials alternative options to the White House’s current plan to drawdown forces from 9,800 currently to a few hundred next year.