KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – A Taliban-linked media outlet has released a video showing former Afghan police commander Allahdad Fidaie apparently confessing to plans to carry out attacks against the group, following his reported arrest in Kabul earlier this month.
The six-minute video was published on Monday by Voice of Hindukush, Fadaei speaks about his arrest, his alleged plans to carry out attacks against the Taliban, and his connection with Sami Sadat, leader of the armed anti-Taliban group Afghanistan United Front.
In the video, Fadaei says he travelled from Iran to Afghanistan at the invitation of the Taliban’s Commission for Contact with Afghan Personalities and was issued a “security card” guaranteeing his safety.
He says that after his arrival, Sadat contacted him and asked him to take command of the front’s planned attacks in Nuristan and Laghman provinces, including an operation in Mandol district of Nuristan. Fadaei says Taliban forces arrested him before the operations could be carried out.
It remains unclear when, where or under what circumstances the video was recorded. The Taliban have previously been accused of forcing detainees to make confessions or appear in propaganda videos.
The Afghanistan United Front confirmed on Monday that Fadaei was a member of the group and has been detained by the Taliban. In a statement, the front described Fadaei as one of its “capable and trusted” commanders, saying he had deep commitment, dedication and loyalty to the front’s leadership.
The front said Fadaei had not carried out any military operations on behalf of the group inside Afghanistan, but was “fully committed to the front’s objectives and fully prepared to play an effective role in the struggle for Afghanistan’s freedom.”
The front did not specify when, where or how Fidaie was arrested. Local media had earlier reported that he was detained at his home in Kabul earlier in November.
In recent days, the Voice of Hindukush also released several audio recordings that it claimed were exchanges between Fidaie and Sadat about coordinating attacks against the Taliban.
The United Afghanistan Front rejected the allegations and described the recordings as fabricated using artificial intelligence. It accused the Taliban of using such claims to justify further repression, arrests and torture of former members of Afghanistan’s defence and security forces.
Fadaei served as police chief in Maidan Wardak, Laghman, Nimruz and Baghlan provinces under Afghanistan’s previous government. He moved to Iran after the Taliban returned to power in August 2021. It remains unclear when he returned to Afghanistan.
