hmad Massoud, the founding father of the National Resistance Front in Panjshir, has not left Afghanistan and is during a safe place, amid the Taliban claiming to possess taken control of the bulk of the valley.
The son of anti-Soviet leader Ahmad Shah Massoud was earlier believed to possess left for Turkey, however, Iranian press agency Fars refuted the rumours and reported that the young fierce leader has not left the country.
Massoud was declared his father’s successor at his mausoleum within the Panjshir Valley on September 5 in 2019.
“In recent days, the Taliban entered Panjshir and now 70 per cent of the most streets and passages are under their control, but the valleys of Panjshir are still under the entire control of the favored forces,” the report quoted Qassem Mohammadi, an in depth aide to Massaoud, as saying.
Last week, Massoud had appealed to the people of Afghanistan to rise against the Taliban and collaborate . “Wherever you’re , inside or outside, I turn you to start a national uprising for the dignity, freedom and prosperity of our country,” Ahmad Massoud told Al Jazeera.
His father, Ahmad Shah Massoud was a strong guerrilla commander during the resistance against the Soviet occupation between 1979 and 1989. He had survived assassination attempts over a period of 26 years, including attempts made by al-Qaeda, the Taliban, the Pakistani ISI and before them the Committee for State Security , the Afghan communist KHAD and Hekmatyar.
On September 9, 2001, he was assassinated by suicide bombers who disguised as journalists seeking an interview with the leader. During the interview, they depart a bomb composed of explosives hidden within the camera and during a battery-pack belt. Massoud died during a helicopter that was taking him to an Indian military military hospital at Farkhor in nearby Tajikistan. one among the suicide attackers, Bouraoui, was killed by the explosion, while Dahmane Abd al-Sattar was captured and shot while trying to flee .
Meanwhile, five days in any case districts of Panjshir and therefore the provincial centre were claimed to be captured by the Taliban, a commander of the Resistance Front during a recorded video message said the militant group’s presence doesn’t mean the top of the war.
Saleh Rigistani, the commander, said they’re going to continue fighting the Taliban forces.
“I am sure that the Mujahideen, the resistance forces and your sons will fight to the death to defend your values and honour,” TOLO News quoted Rigistani as saying on Friday.
“Right now, Panjshir is that the centre of resistance and therefore the resistance forces are present altogether the mountains,” said Abdul Latif Pedram, the leader of the National Congress Party.
Rigistani also said the people in Panjshir face hunger and a scarcity of drugs .
The Taliban, however, said a number of the opposition fighters had fled to the mountains but talks were ongoing to convince them to return to normal life.
Anaamullah Samangani, a member of the Taliban’s Cultural Commission, said Taliban forces have captured all parts of Panjshir which the resistance forces aren’t there in any public way, the report said.
“They don’t have a public presence; they’re hidden in valleys and caves. Talks are ongoing with them, and that we attempt to encourage them to return and lead peaceful and normal lives among their people,” he said.
Although reports indicate that each side have agreed on a three-day unofficial ceasefire, neither side has confirmed the reports.
Meanwhile, Iran’s representative within the N called the war in Panjshir “fratricide”.
A number of Panjshir residents said that folks face numerous problems as roads leading into the province are blocked and telecom services aren’t working.
“People don’t have food. Children need power and other people live scattered in several areas,” Afsana Mohammadi, a Panjshir resident, was quoted as saying by TOLO News.
“Telecom services are completely cut in Panjshir and therefore the lack of electricity is another big problem,” said Abdulwasi Almas, an area reporter from the province.
After the capture of Panjshir, a Taliban spokesperson said that Panjshir would have electricity and telecom services soon, which roads would open.
