Anti-Taliban Resistance Groups Step Up Armed Operations Across Afghanistan

Armed resistance groups opposed to Afghanistan’s Taliban administration have intensified operations in several parts of the country, with the Afghanistan United Front (AUF), Afghanistan Freedom Front (AFF) and National Independence Front reporting attacks on Taliban personnel and security positions.

The developments come as the National Resistance Front (NRF) has also reaffirmed its intention to continue armed resistance against the Taliban administration.

Reports from Afghan resistance groups and regional security monitors indicate that anti-Taliban groups have carried out operations in several provinces in recent weeks. However, casualty figures and details provided by the groups could not be independently verified in many cases.

AUF Reports Attacks in Several Provinces

The Afghanistan United Front has reported a series of operations against Taliban personnel in Kandahar, Nangarhar and Badghis, among other areas.

According to the group, an ambush in Jowand district of Badghis on September 21 killed a Taliban member and resulted in the seizure of a Kalashnikov.

The AUF also said a Taliban intelligence official was killed in a targeted operation near Jalalabad in Nangarhar on September 18.

The group further reported that one Taliban member was killed in an operation at Bagh-e-Pul Bazaar in Kandahar city on September 16.

Security monitors have separately documented several AUF attacks against Taliban personnel and checkpoints in Kandahar and other provinces during September.

AFF Reports Attack on Taliban Checkpoint

The Afghanistan Freedom Front (AFF) has also reported operations against Taliban positions.

According to the group, its fighters attacked a Taliban checkpoint in the Sarai Shomali area of Kabul on September 16, killing two Taliban personnel and injuring two others.

The AFF has reported other attacks in provinces including Kunar, Kapisa and Ghor. Security-monitoring reports have recorded several of these incidents, while noting that casualty figures are generally based on statements issued by the groups involved.

National Independence Front Reports Targeted Operation

The National Independence Front has also announced armed operations against Taliban officials.

According to the group, its fighters carried out a targeted operation in Kandahar on September 20 against a guesthouse associated with Kandahar provincial security commander Abdul Ahad, also known as Maulana Talib.

The group said four guards were killed and two others were seriously wounded in the operation.

The National Independence Front has reiterated its intention to continue political and organisational resistance against the Taliban administration.

NRF Commander Reaffirms Armed Resistance

The National Resistance Front has also signalled a continuation of its armed campaign.

Senior NRF commander Saleh Mohammad Registani recently announced his return to Afghanistan and said the resistance against the Taliban administration was continuing. The NRF released a video showing Registani in a mountainous area, where he spoke about the activities of the front and the emergence of other resistance fronts across the country.

Registani said the NRF would continue armed resistance in coordination with other opposition groups.

He also accused the Taliban administration of arbitrary arrests, detention without trial and mistreatment of detainees, while alleging that Afghanistan’s resources had been subjected to mismanagement and that militant groups had been allowed to operate.

He said resistance fronts had become active in different parts of Afghanistan and that the NRF would continue its activities against the Taliban alongside other opposition groups.

Resistance Activity Expands

The latest developments indicate that armed opposition to the Taliban administration remains active despite the Taliban’s control over the country.

A recent assessment by Pakistan’s state broadcaster, citing Afghan publication Hasht-e Subh, said the NRF, AFF and AUF had claimed dozens of attacks between July and early September, while other resistance groups had also announced operations.

Security analysts have noted that the growing number of armed opposition groups creates additional security challenges for the Taliban administration.