Taliban Faces Growing Insurgent Threat Five Years After Seizing Power

Edited
by:
Da ko
Ja jevic

Less
tha
a
mo th
befo e
the
five-yea
a ive sa y
of
the
Taliba
etaki g
powe
i
Afgha ista ,
the
Islamist
egime
lost
co t ol
of
the
Yaftal-e
Payee
dist ict
capital
i
the
o theaste
p ovi ce
of
Badakhsha .
The
dis uptio
was
tempo a y,
but
it
eve theless
ma ked
the
fi st
time
the
Taliba
lost
co t ol
of
a
dist ict
ce te
si ce
etu i g
to
powe
i
August
2021.

Repo ts
f om
Badakhsha
also
i dicated
i te al
clashes
amo g
Taliba
fighte s
a d
fatal
attacks
o
high- a ki g
Taliba
officials.

O
August
2,
some
two
weeks
afte
the
b ief
loss
of
the
dist ict
ce te ,
fo me
Afgha
a my
ge e al
Sami
Sadat
o de ed
his
fo ces
to
lau ch
attacks
agai st
the
Taliba
ac oss
the
cou t y.

“Today
at
5:00
AM,
I
o de ed
all
milita y
membe s
of
the
U ited
F o t
to
begi
milita y
ope atio s,”
Ge e al
Sadat
said
i
a
video
message
eleased
f om
the
US,
whe e
he
has
lived
si ce
the
fall
of
Afgha ista
to
the
Taliba .

Othe
a med
g oups,
i cludi g
the
Natio al
Resista ce
F o t
led
by
the
so
of
the
late
comma de
Ahmad
Shah
Massoud,
have
bee
e gaged
i
a
co ti uous
a med
st uggle
agai st
the
Taliba
si ce
2021.
While
a med
i su ge ts
have
ot
bee
able
to
pose
a
majo
th eat
to
the
Taliba ‘s
ove all
g ip
o
powe ,
expe ts
a e
questio i g
whethe
the
clashes
i
Badakhsha
could
pave
the
way
fo
mo e
impactful
esista ce.

“I
these
five
yea s,
this
oppositio
existed
i
two
fo ms:
political
a d
milita y…
As
the
five-yea
ma k
app oaches,
both
fo ms
of
oppositio
have
take
shape,”
fo me
Afgha
I te io
Mi iste
Mohammad
Ume
Daudzai
told
DW.

Fea
of
ew
p oxy
wa s
i
Afgha ista

The
Taliba
have
eig ed
with
a
i o
fist
si ce
the
collapse
of
the
US-backed
Afgha
gove me t
five
yea s
ago.
The
Islamist
egime
de ied
basic
huma
ights
a d
imposed
st ict
est ictio s
o
wome ,
ba i g
them
f om
wo k
a d
educatio
beyo d
the
sixth
g ade.
Wome
a e
mostly
ba ed
f om
public
life
i
Afgha ista
as
well,
a d
have
few
ights
at
all.

Most
fo me
gove me t
officials
a e
i
exile.
While
the
Taliba
mai tai
that
all
Afgha s
a e
f ee
to
etu
a d
lead
o di a y
lives,
oppo e ts
cou te
that
etu
is
o ly
viable
if
political
activity
is
pe mitted.

While
the
egime
ma aged
to
cultivate
some
co tacts
i te atio ally,
they
a e
still
viewed
as
illegitimate
by
most
of
the
wo ld’s
gove me ts.
To
date,
o ly
Russia
has
ack owledged
the
Taliba
as
the
official
gove me t
of
Afgha ista .

Faci g
p essu es
both
withi
a d
outside
of
the
cou t y,
the
Taliba
epeatedly
poi ted
to
the
esto atio
of
atio wide
secu ity
as
thei
p ima y
claim
to
legitimacy.
Howeve ,
expe ts
wa
that
thei
gove i g
style
could
i
fact
e able
a med
ebels
to
challe ge
them
i
va ious
pa ts
of
Afgha ista .

“If
this
policy
of
the
Taliba
co ti ues,
a med
fo ces
will
eme ge
agai st
them,
oppositio
will
eme ge,
i te fe e ce
f om
eighbo s
will
a ise,
a d
ultimately
the
g ou d
will
be
p epa ed
fo
p oxy
wa s,”
fo me
Acti g
Mi iste
of
Defe se
Shahmohammad
Miakhel
told
DW.

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U hu t

Beyo d
political
oppositio ,
the
egio al
b a ch
of
the
“Islamic
State”
(IS)
emai s
active
i
Afgha ista .
The
g oup
has
claimed
espo sibility
fo
seve al
high-p ofile
attacks
agai st
Taliba
officials,
i cludi g
a
Ja ua y
explosio
at
a
Chi ese
estau a t
i
ce t al
Kabul
that
killed
at
least
seve
people,
a d
a
Decembe
2024
suicide
bombi g
i
Kabul
that
killed
the
egime’s
Mi iste
of
Refugees
Khalil
U -Rahma
Haqqa i.

Taliba
claim
Pakista
suppo ts
i su ge ts
i
Afgha ista

The
st o gest
challe ge
to
Taliba
co t ol
could
o igi ate
f om
outside
Afgha ista ‘s
bo de s.
Relatio s
betwee
Afgha ista
a d
Pakista
—
o ce
co side ed
o e
of
the
Taliba ‘s
closest
allies
—
have
bee
f aught
with
te sio
si ce
2021,
e upti g
i
full
o
clashes
this
yea .
Acco di g
to
a
U ited
Natio s
epo t
f om
May,
c oss-bo de
hostilities
du i g
the
fi st
th ee
mo ths
of
2026
esulted
i
at
least
372
Afgha
civilia
deaths
a d
ea ly
400
i ju ies.

“Whe
M .
Sami
Sadat
issues
such
a
o de
f om
Ame ica
to
those
who
must
fight
the
Taliba ,
he
has
ce tai ly
see
a
g ee
light.
A d
emembe
that
i
Afgha ista ,
o
g oup
a d
o
o e
ca
ca y
out
a y
activity
without
the
suppo t
of
o e
o
mo e
fo eig
cou t ies,”
fo me
defe se
mi ist y
spokespe so
Mohammad
Radma ish
told
DW.

While
the
Taliba
publicly
dow play
the
th eat
posed
by
ebel
g oups,
they
also
allege
that
exte al
suppo t
fo
a med
esista ce
is
isi g.

“We
a e
awa e
that
lame
ducks
we e
i vited
to
Pakista
[…]
A
la ge
g oup
has
bee
i vited
to
Islamabad
who
a e
ow
discussi g
whe e
they
ca
have
a
office
a d
ce te
a d
efuge,”
Taliba
spokesma
Zabihullah
Mujahid
told
DW
i
a
i te view.

Whe
p essed
by
DW
to
p ovide
evide ce
fo
these
claims,
Mujahid
offe ed
o
p oof.

‘Islamabad
has
used
all
its
optio s’

Pakista
accuses
the
Taliba
of
p ovidi g
safe
have s
to
milita ts
executi g
attacks
i side
Pakista i
te ito y,
pa ticula ly
the
Teh eek-e-Taliba
Pakista
(TTP).
The
Taliba
de y
these
cha ges,
i
tu
accusi g
Pakista
of
ha bo i g
hostile
eleme ts
a d
violati g
Afgha
sove eig ty.

Qama
Cheema,
a
Islamabad-based
secu ity
expe t,
told
DW
i
Feb ua y
that
it
is
Pakista
that
is
ta geti g
the
milita t
g oups.

“Pakista
wa ts
the
Afgha
people
to
u de sta d
that
the
Taliba
a e
ha bo i g
te o ists.
The efo e,
Pakista
will
co ti ue
ta geti g
milita y
sites
associated
with
the
Taliba ,
TTP
a d
ISIS-K
hideouts,”
Cheema
said.

“Islamabad
has
used
all
its
optio s,
i cludi g
egio al
diplomacy
a d
di ect
commu icatio ,
but
othi g
has
bee
ho o ed,”
he
added.
“As
a
eighbo i g
Muslim
cou t y,
Pakista
appea s
to
i flict
damage
i
a
attempt
to
alte
Taliba
behavio .”

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