The anti-Taliban resistance front led by Ahmad Massoud and former Afghan first vice president Amrullah Saleh has announced they would resume their fighting soon against the Taliban, reported Russian news agency TASS, as the group’s leaders, believed to be based in neighboring Tajikistan, are trying to lobby support from key international players and regional powers. 

A report in TASS, citing the spokesman for the National Resistance Front, Kabir Wasiq, confirmed that anti-Taliban leaders were trying to soon launch their attacks on the Taliban, which has seized power in Afghanistan on 15 August, toppling the US-backed Afghan government. 

"The Taliban militants are, indeed, controlling government institutions in Panjshir and the province’s roads,” Wasiq was quoted as saying by TASS, adding, their fighters “are being set up in high-mountainous terrain and other separate districts of the Panjshir Gorge, and they will soon resume fighting against Taliban terrorist groups." 

Panjshir, a northern Afghan province just 90 miles of capital Kabul, was the last province captured by the Taliban--almost three weeks after the fall of Kabul.  

The Afghan forces opposed the Taliban put up resistance in Panjshir, which was led by Ahmad Massoud, son of the late guerilla commander Ahmad Shah Massoud who was killed a day before 9/11. In the 90s, the senior Massoud was the only Mujahideen commander who prevented a complete takeover of the country by the Taliban. 

"There are no doubts that the Taliban terrorist group poses a threat to all countries, especially for Central Asian states,” Wasiq said, hoping support from regional countries, including Russia, which has significant influence. The world as a whole, he said, should oppose the Taliban and support the Afghan people and the resistance forces in their fight against terrorists. 

In the 90s, Moscow, along with India and Iran covertly supported anti-Taliban groups in Afghanistan. However, in recent years, Russia initiated contact with the Taliban, accepting the group as a reality in the country. Even after the fall of Kabul, Russia was among the handful of countries that maintained their embassies in Kabul. 

No country has so far recognized the Taliban’s interim government. 

"Russia can also exert pressure on the Taliban and push it from the Afghan [political] forefront," the resistance spokesperson said. The group has recently opened a liaison office in the United States to lobby with lawmakers and decision makers.   

(SAM)