Afghan militiamen join Afghan defense and security forces during a gathering in Kabul, Afghanistan, June 23, 2021. (Photo: CFP)

Afghan Taliban militants now control about half of the war-torn country's 419 district centers, a top U.S. general said on Wednesday.

"Strategic momentum appears to be sort of with the Taliban," General Mark Milley, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, told a press conference.

"There's a possibility of a complete Taliban takeover, or the possibility of any number of other scenarios," Milley said. "I don't think the end game is yet written."

While the militants have yet to capture any of the country's 34 provincial capitals, they are pressuring about half of them, he said.

Afghan security forces are consolidating their positions to protect those major urban centers including Kabul, he added.