KABUL, AFGHANISTAN — The leaders of armed opposition groups say that only military resistance can liberate Afghanistan from the Taliban. They vow to intensify their battle against the Taliban this year.
During a virtual meeting on Saturday, April 13, commemorating the first anniversary of the assassination of senior commanders of the Afghanistan Freedom Front (AFF), the leaders called on the people of Afghanistan and opposing groups to unite in liberating Afghanistan from the Taliban.
In April of last year, the AFF confirmed the loss of its senior commanders, including former Afghan Special Forces Commanders Akmal Ameer and Basir Andarabi, along with their five companions. The incident took place during a clash with Taliban fighters in southern Salang, Parwan province.
Mr. Ameer and Mr. Andarabi were leading members of the Afghanistan national defense force during the republic government. Following the Taliban takeover of Kabul, they moved to Panjshir province and joined the resistance front, where they became actively involved in fighting against the Taliban.
In today’s meeting, General Mohammad Yasin Zia, founder and leader of AFF, who previously served as ANDSF’s Chief of Personnel and deputy director of national intelligence, emphasized that the only path to liberating Afghanistan is through armed resistance. He stressed that achieving this goal requires unity and solidarity among the people of Afghanistan against the Taliban.
He argued that the regime in power in Afghanistan has encountered substantial challenges from the armed resistance, which is why they have established over 2,000 military posts only in Panjshir province.
Additionally, the leader of AFF said that Afghanistan under the Taliban has transformed into a hub for terrorism. He mentioned that the regime recruits Afghan youths via Telegram channels, trains them, and deploys them to perpetuate instability in the region, sometimes even using them in their internal conflicts.
Meanwhile, Ahmad Massoud, leader of the National Resistance Front (NRF), another armed anti-Taliban group, also stressed the importance of unity among the people of Afghanistan against the Taliban. He affirmed that the resistance group under his leadership would persist in combating the Taliban.
“This year, the National Resistance Front will escalate its fight against the Taliban, promising positive outcomes for the people of Afghanistan,” he said.
He also said that some individuals both inside and outside Afghanistan continue to whitewash the Taliban, despite the fact that over the last three years, this group has shown no signs of change and cannot be whitewashed.
Following the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan, many opposition armed groups were formed, with a few still fighting the Taliban in various provinces. The Afghanistan Freedom Front (AFF) and the National Resistance Front (NRF) have been particularly active in challenging the Taliban, primarily in capital Kabul and the northern part of the country.
The AFF, largely formed of former security forces, has engaged in armed clashes with the Taliban since the group’s return to power in Afghanistan in August 2021. Recently, it has intensified its guerrilla attacks against the Taliban in several provinces of Afghanistan, including in Kabul.
In the past months, the resistance group has claimed to have killed and injured dozens of Taliban members in Kabul, Parwan, Baghlan, Balkh, Panjshir, and Kapisa provinces.
AFF claims that it has carried out 230 attacks against the Taliban in the last two years, and in these attacks, 600 Taliban members were killed and 700 other members of this group were injured.
During the month of Ramadan, a month of fasting and prayer in Islamic calendar, AFF temporarily stopped its operation against the Taliban, however, it announced yesterday that it will resume its guerrilla operation against the regime. The regime, AFF says, is responsible for suppressing and persecuting the people of Afghanistan, particularly women and girls in the country.
In the latest incident earlier today, AFF claimed that it conducted an operation in the vicinity of Artel Bridge in Kabul city, targeting a vehicle belonging to Taliban intelligence members. This attack, according to AFF, resulted in the deaths and injuries of four Taliban members.
