KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – The Afghanistan Freedom Front (AFF), an armed group fighting the Taliban, claims that its “freedom fighters” killed 14 Taliban members and wounded 10 others in separate attacks in Kabul, Badakhshan, and Kunar provinces.
The group stated in a post on X that its fighters killed at least 10 Taliban members and injured six in Badakhshan’s Zibak district on Tuesday. According to the AFF, the clashes followed Taliban artillery attacks on its positions that began in the afternoon and lasted until around 10 p.m. local time.
The AFF said foreign fighters were among the casualties. It claimed the Taliban, fearing that the identities of those fighters could be exposed, transferred the bodies of those killed and even the wounded to undisclosed locations.
In a separate post, the AFF said its fighters carried out their first operation in eastern Kunar province on Wednesday evening, targeting a Taliban checkpoint along the main Asadabad-Jalalabad road. It claimed one Taliban member was killed and two others were wounded.
In a separate operation in Kabul, the group said its forces attacked a Taliban checkpoint in the Ali Khil area of the capital’s 16th security district, killing three Taliban members and wounding two others.
The Taliban has not commented on the claims.
The AFF is one of several armed groups that emerged after the Taliban regained power in 2021 following the withdrawal of U.S.-led foreign forces. Composed largely of former Afghan security personnel, the group typically carries out guerrilla-style attacks against Taliban checkpoints, convoys and positions in provinces including Kabul, Kandahar and other major cities.
The latest claims come amid reports of increased armed opposition activity in northern and northeastern Afghanistan, particularly in Badakhshan, a province bordering Tajikistan, China and Pakistan. Earlier this month, the AFF claimed that its fighters killed 21 Taliban members, including several commanders, and wounded 37 others in a coordinated attack in Zibak district.
Last month, a newly formed anti-Taliban group known as Sepahian-e Mihan, or Soldiers of the Homeland, briefly seized control of Yaftal-e Payeen district in Badakhshan. The incident marked the first reported temporary loss of a district by the Taliban since its return to power.
