forces and local police said they were back in control, with additional troops, including special forces, being flown in.

The governor said in the early hours of Tuesday that the clear-up operation was continuing but people should "start their daily life and go to their work".

"If there is any Taliban hiding inside the houses, we will clear that after dawn."

At least one member of the security forces was killed, while there were various conflicting reports on the number of militant casualties.

Kunduz police chief Mohammad Qasim Jangalbagh told AFP that "hundreds of Taliban fighters" were killed.

Read more:

Who are the Taliban?

Battleground Kunduz: The city the Taliban seized

Revisiting scarred Kunduz

What we know about the Taliban leader

The capture of Kunduz by the Taliban last September was a huge blow to the country's Western-backedgovernment. The militants abandoned the city after four days but they had proved their growing capability by taking their first major city.

The group raided Tarin Kot, the provincial capital of Uruzgan, last month.

Afghan government forces are estimated to have control over no more than two-thirds of Afghanistan.

The two-day conference in Brussels, attended by Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and led by the EU, aims to raise billions of dollars to fund Afghanistan until 2020.

Officials have said financial support from the international community is essential to secure the country's stability.

The EU's Special Representative for Afghanistan, Franz-Michael Mellbin, said the conference was "buying four more years for Afghanistan" as well as seeking a "realistic" peace process.

"If we don't achieve peace, it's simply going to be extremely costly for the foreseeable future,"