Taliban enter outskirts of capital Kabul, say Afghan officials

Taliban fighters sit on the back of a vehicle in the city of Herat, west of Kabul, Afghanistan (Hamed Sarfarazi/AP)

Taliban fighters have entered the outskirts of the Afghan capital Kabul, further tightening their grip on the country as panicked workers fled government offices and helicopters landed at the US embassy.

Three Afghan officials told the Associated Press that the Taliban were in the districts of Kalakan, Qarabagh and Paghman in the capital.