KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – Naqibullah Faiq, the former governor of Faryab during the previous government of Afghanistan, says that Hibatullah Akhundzada, the leader of the Taliban, has instructed the group’s officials in Faryab to urgently provide ID cards and land to the settlers.
Mr. Faiq wrote on Facebook tonight (Monday, May 4) that following this order, Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taliban’s Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, traveled to Faryab to ensure its swift implementation and remained in the north for about a week to closely monitor the start of the ID card distribution process.
He added that the inauguration of several so-called projects by Mullah Baradar appeared to be an attempt to ease public dissatisfaction. He also said that Mawlawi Fazli (Abdul Ahad Fazli) was promoted to a ministerial position after managing to suppress public protests and effectively carry out the ID card distribution, which he described as having ethnic implications.
The former governor of Faryab has claimed that the next step would involve relocating large numbers of Waziri individuals to the north under the designation of Kochis and migrants.
He also published a document from the Taliban’s police command in Faryab, indicating that district police commanders in Qaramqol, Qorghan, Andkhoy, Khan Chahar Bagh, and Dawlatabad were instructed to report within three days on efforts to resolve issues related to distributing ID cards to residents of Mirza Qom village in Qaramqol district, in line with a specific order issued by Hibatullah Akhundzada.
Naqibullah Faiq had earlier stated that instructions were given to local authorities to issue ID cards to Kochis settled in Qaramqol and Dawlatabad and to allocate around one hundred jeribs of land to each recipient.
He further claimed that, according to his information, thousands of foreign migrants had been transferred to Mirza Qom village in Qaramqol and to Jangal village in Dawlatabad.
Faiq stated that the Taliban appear to be pursuing several objectives through these actions, including distributing land and grazing areas to Kochis, altering the ethnic and demographic composition of northern Afghanistan, and advancing what he described as a continuation of policies dating back to Abdur Rahman Khan aimed at consolidating control over border regions through specific population groups.
He also noted that Qaramqol shares a border with Turkmenistan and claimed that foreign Kochis have been settled in these sensitive border areas.
It was previously reported that residents of Qaramqol district in Faryab had staged protests against the distribution of ID cards to Kochis.
The Taliban have not yet officially responded to these claims.
This report highlights ongoing concerns about demographic changes, land distribution, and resettlement policies in northern Afghanistan, which continue to raise serious concerns among local communities regarding potential long-term social and political consequences.
The group has previously faced accusations of attempting to alter the demographic structure in northern and other parts of the country.
In 2023, the Taliban stated that they intended to relocate Waziristani migrants to southern, central, and northern provinces.
However, local residents have alleged that members of Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Kochis are being settled in the north with the aim of changing the demographic balance in these regions.
Last year, the group had earmarked land for refugee settlements in several provinces, including Kabul, Ghazni, Uruzgan, Farah, Kandahar, Jawzjan, Samangan, Panjshir, and Bamiyan. Earlier that month, the Taliban had begun a similar land distribution program for refugees in Daikundi, a central province in Afghanistan.
The settlement project came nearly two years after large-scale forced deportations of Afghan migrants from neighboring countries such as Pakistan and Iran.
These deportations, which affected millions of people, had left many returnees struggling to find adequate housing and basic necessities. Reports from various returnees indicated that the lack of housing and employment opportunities remained a significant issue for those who had returned to Afghanistan.
Some critics argued that the Taliban were attempting to manipulate the region’s demographic makeup by settling Pashtun refugees, which could have heightened tensions between returnees and the local population. Others questioned the viability of these settlements, given Afghanistan’s ongoing challenges, including a fragile economy, inadequate infrastructure, and a lack of essential social services.
