Taliban rattled by Panjshir uprising
Dozens of Taliban fighters were killed in an uprising last week, in the most significant military resistance to Afghanistan’s new rulers since their takeover, regime commanders have admitted.
Fighting in Panjshir province north of the capital Kabul left more than 30 Taliban fighters dead and many more wounded, before military leaders flooded the area with reinforcements to regain control.
The clashes marked the biggest operation yet by a resistance front including some remnants of the former Afghan armed forces. It has vowed to launch a military campaign against the Taliban.
The National Resistance Front (NRF) is led by Ahmad Massoud, the son of the famed late Mujahideen commander Ahmad Shah Massoud, who used the Panjshir Valley’s formidable natural defences as a base to resist both Soviet forces and the Taliban.
The Taliban’s stunning August 2021 victory over an internationally-backed government has seen the Islamists hold the country largely uncontested since then, except for attacks by the Islamic State group. But many fear that it is only a matter of time before the Taliban’s refusal to widen its government and include former adversaries will foment another chapter of civil war for the country.
The European Union’s envoy to Afghanistan, Andreas von Brandt, said he was ‘‘concerned by reports of killings of civilians and mistreatment in Panjshir’’ as the Taliban cracked down after the fighting. Unverified videos shared on social media have claimed to show locals executed by Taliban forces.
The Taliban leadership has officially played down the clashes, insisting there were ‘‘no military incidents’’, and deriding the NRF as little more than an internet propaganda force.
But in phone interviews with The Telegraph, Taliban fighters and commanders confirmed the clashes.
A Taliban senior security officer said at least 32 fighters had been killed and more than 50 wounded.
‘‘It is important to tackle this sedition in its early stage, so it does not spread,’’ he said. ‘‘We are making permanent bases in each area, with good numbers of Taliban, to oppress such resistance.’’
A resident of Abdullah Khel in Panjshir said the Taliban had withdrawn after the attacks, only to return in overwhelming numbers.
The NRF has vowed to continue its offensive during the northern summer across the north of Afghanistan. There have been reports of further attacks in Andarab district and Takhar province, but analysts have said that without supply lines to neighbouring countries, any insurgency will struggle. – Telegraph Group