Following the 2021 Taliban offensive, an opposing alliance led by Ahmad Massoud, son of late Afghan politician Ahmad Shah Massoud and caretaker President Amrullah Saleh is reportedly gathering forces in Panjshir.
For the first time since 2001, the flag of the Northern Alliance or the United Islamic Front for the salvation of Afghanistan has been hoisted in Panjshir valley. Amid the fall of Kabul in 2021, former Northern Alliance and other anti-Taliban leaders have regrouped as the Panjshir resistance.
#BREAKING: 1st Afghan Resistance Force is now LIVE! 🤘🏻 Flag of the Northern Alliance has been raised in Panjshir, Afghanistan
— 🍁Noorullah Durrani 🇦🇫🇿🇦 | نورالله درانی🍁 (@HajiNoorUllah7) August 16, 2021
The movement is officially alive for the first time since 2001, now led by Ahmad Massoud, son of its legendary ex-leader, Ahmad Shah Massoud.#kabul pic.twitter.com/boWnhMFsPU
In a video message, Ahmad Massoud urged his compatriots to join him for the freedom of Afghanistan. He has also urged the natives to follow in his father's footsteps through an opinion piece published in The Washington Post.
Ahmad Masoud wrote, "I write from the Panjshir Valley today, ready to follow in my father’s footsteps, with mujahideen fighters who are prepared to once again take on the Taliban. We have stores of ammunition and arms that we have patiently collected since my father’s time because we knew this day might come...The Taliban is not a problem for the Afghan people alone. Under Taliban control, Afghanistan will, without doubt, become ground zero of radical Islamist terrorism; plots against democracies will be hatched here once again."
#BREAKING
— 🍁Noorullah Durrani 🇦🇫🇿🇦 | نورالله درانی🍁 (@HajiNoorUllah7) August 17, 2021
Ahmad Masoud in #Panjshir valley with his patriots urging Afghans to join him for the freedom of their country. @ahmadmassoud01 is the son of the legendary national hero of #Afghanistan -- Ahmad Shah Massoud. #Kabul #Afghan_lives_matter
pic.twitter.com/Z3eKj9Xktc
Afghan soldiers who managed to hide from Taliban troops are arriving in Panjshir at his call. They have reportedly arrived with their equipment post their withdrawal from the nearby frontlines. It is believed that other anti-Talibani forces may unite again to fight against the Taliban.
| Panjshir 1- It is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan, located in the Hindu Kush. 2- Divided into seven districts, it is the epicentre of the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan and the only province that is not controlled by the Taliban since their 2021 offensive. 3- Panjshir was a resistance zone against the Soviet army in the 1980s and against the Taliban regime in the 1990s. The region has never been conquered by foreign or Taliban forces due to its location which makes it a natural fortress. |
On 17 August 2021, Amrullah Saleh has staked a claim as the legitimate caretaker President, citing the Afghan Constitution. Take a look at his tweet below.
Clarity: As per d constitution of Afg, in absence, escape, resignation or death of the President the FVP becomes the caretaker President. I am currently inside my country & am the legitimate care taker President. Am reaching out to all leaders to secure their support & consensus.
— Amrullah Saleh (@AmrullahSaleh2) August 17, 2021
Meanwhile, Mullah Omar confidant and co-founder of Taliban, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar returned to Afghanistan after spending months in Qatar where he was engaged in talks with the United States.
Over thousands of Afghan natives have tried to flee the country amid fears of the Taliban's hardline brand of Islam, or fearing direct retribution for siding with the US-backed government that ruled for the past two decades.
| The Northern Alliance 1- The Northern Alliance or the United Islamic Front for the Salvation of Afghanistan was a resistance movement against the previous five-year Taliban regime in Afghanistan from 1996-2001. 2- It was dissolved post a two-month war against the Taliban, which the Northern Alliance won in December 2001. 3- Initially, only Tajiks were a part of the alliance, but by 2000, leaders of other ethnic groups too joined hands to oust the Taliban-led Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. 4- Its leaders include-- Abdul Ali Mazari, Burhanuddin Rabbani, Sayed Hussain Anwari, Asif Mohseni, Abdullah Abdullah, Ahmad Shah Massoud, Abdul Rashid Dostum, Haji Abdul Qadeer, Muhammad Mohaqiq and Karim Khalili. 5- United States(after September 2001), Iran, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, India, and Uzbekistan are the allies of the Alliance while Taliban and Al-Qaeda oppose the alliance. |
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