When the Taliban captured a strategically important security checkpoint near Afghanistan’s border with Tajikistan last month, it assigned a Tajik militant to raise the Taliban flag on the site. The militant goes by the alias Mahdi Arsalon and has a group of fighters from Tajikistan under his command, an eyewitness to the flag-raising and other sources told RFE/RL. The Taliban […]

Ex-CIA chief David Petraeus warned that the decision by President Joseph Biden’s administration to withdraw troops from Afghanistan may, in view of the current situation, plunge Afghanistan into a civil war. Speaking at an online conference organized by the Middle East Institute, Petraeus said “we accomplished the mission that took us to Afghanistan in the first place and that actually […]

The head of the Afghan Parliament’s internal security commission on Tuesday accused the Office of National Security Council (ONSC) of incompetence, saying interference by the ONSC in the affairs of the country’s security agencies is complicating the war effort on the battlefield. Khan Agha Rezaee, the head of Parliament’s internal security commission, said that officials from the security institutions do […]

Pakistan’s military said it had granted asylum to at least 46 Afghan soldiers who crossed the Durand Line into northwestern Pakistan after their military posts in Afghanistan were overrun by Taliban insurgents. At least 46 Afghan soldiers had sought refuge in Pakistan after losing control of military positions across the border following advances by Taliban insurgents have been returned to […]

Thousands of Afghans who have been promised U.S. visas are facing death threats from the Taliban, and the U.S. effort to evacuate them is facing daunting hurdles. The Biden administration is ahead of schedule to have all U.S. forces out of Afghanistan by the end of next month. On the heels of that withdrawal, the Taliban are violently retaking parts […]

Former Kapisa governor Mehrabuddin Safi said that weak coordination among public uprising forces led to the fall of many key areas to the Taliban in the province, including Nijrab district. Safi said that the presence of a large number of Taliban fighters also led to the fall of the Kapisa districts. Security forces left key parts of Nijrab districts two […]

While many may say any government effort will be too little, too late, the importance of rebutting Taliban propaganda must still be a priority for the Afghan government and seen as no less important than combat operations. As the war in Afghanistan rages on between the Taliban and Afghan security forces, one frequently-cited feature in Western media coverage has been […]

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and his Tajik counterpart Sherali Mirzo on Saturday discussed joint measures to counter threats from the Taliban in the Tajikistan and Afghanistan border area, Russia’s TASS news agency reported. Russia on Friday pledged to help its ally Tajikistan to build a new outpost on the border. The two countries will also hold major drills next […]

A special unit of the country’s intelligence agency, NDS, conducted an operation in Rabat village in Parwan province last week in which 10 people were killed, following concerns raised by local residents linking insecurity in the area to the existence of illegal armed groups. There have been many reports about the activities of illegal armed groups in some areas recently. […]

Sources said that security forces left Narai district in the eastern province of Kunar on Sunday due to lack of supplies and that fighting continues on other fronts, including Nijrab district in Kapisa where its central areas are still under Taliban influence. “Narai district fell (to the Taliban) without resistance. This shows the weakness of the leadership of the security […]