Afghan resistance group claims arrest of Taliban forces

KABUL: An Afghan armed resistance group claimed to have arrested dozens of Taliban forces, as the Islamists celebrated their first year in power and others called it a “dark day”.

Five “Taliban occupiers” were killed and 40 captured in the Arezoo valley of Panjshir province, said the spokesman of the National Resistance Front (NRF), Sibghatullah Ahmadi, as he released pictures of alleged captives.

NRF is led by Ahmad Massoud, the son of famous anti-Soviet guerilla commander Ahmad Shah Massoud, and claims to be fighting for democratic values such as a equitable political representation of ethnic groups, protection of women’s rights and fair elections.

The Taliban’s government is yet to comment on the claim.

However, Defence Minister Mullah Yaqoob Mujahid said on Monday that their forces will suppress rebel groups under all circumstances.

To mark the first anniversary of the fall of Kabul, Taliban members paraded in the city with US military equipment and their leaders spoke at a televised gathering.

At the event, the Taliban’s Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi called on the world to cooperate with their government.

On social media, many Afghans spoke of their ordeal and called it a “dark day” for the nation.

In a statement, the UN diplomatic mission in the country said “without change, things can worsen”.