Afghan envoy says hold-out Panjshir province can resist Taliban rule

FILE PHOTO: U.S. Chinook helicopters leave after a security handover ceremony in Panjshir province July 24, 2011. REUTERS/Ahmad Masood

DUSHANBE (Reuters) - The Afghan ambassador to Tajikistan on Wednesday rejected Taliban rule of his country and said hold-out Panjshir province, north of Kabul, would serve as a stronghold for resistance led by self-proclaimed acting president Amrullah Saleh.

Afghan First Vice-President Saleh said on Tuesday he was the "legitimate caretaker president" of Afghanistan after President Ashraf Ghani fled the country as Taliban insurgents took the capital Kabul. Saleh's whereabouts were unknown.