Thousands of Taliban fighters overrun eight districts of Panjshir overnight, according to witnesses from the area. They spoke on condition of anonymity fearing for their safety.

For the three months through August, the average temperature was 9.8 Celsius (50 Fahrenheit), according to New Zealand's National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research. That's 1.3 Celsius above the long-term average and 0.2 Celsius higher than the previous record posted last year. Scientists have been keeping records since 1909, but most of the warmest winters have been recent.

National Resistance Front leader Ahmad Massoud alleged that Pakistan Army is helping Taliban in its fight to capture Panjshir valley amid the reports of former vice president Amrullah Saleh being shifted to an undisclosed location.

The newspaper reported that the situation facing those hoping to leave from the international airport in the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif mirrored that of thousands who were unable to board flights from Kabul after the Taliban took the capital before US troops withdrew.