Taliban Publicly Flogs Four Individuals in Zabul & Nangarhar Provinces

Razieh Alipour, the Director General of Aliens and Immigrant Affairs in Iran's Bushehr province, emphasized that any immigrants found in these counties, regardless of their status, would be subject to immediate expulsion.

The Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA) reported that there is an ongoing effort within Bushehr Province to identify and expel undocumented immigrants. Alipour noted that over the past year, more than 26,000 individuals were identified and processed for deportation as part of this initiative.

Additionally, ISNA mentioned that immigrants possessing refugee cards are permitted to move to other provinces only with a travel authorization from their originating province.

Afghans, who represent the largest migrant community in Iran, have been particularly affected. The Iranian government has recently escalated its efforts to repatriate Afghan migrants, mirroring similar measures in Pakistan.

Furthermore, an official reported on Saturday that in Lorestan Province, 247 migrants working without proper permits were identified and deported from their places of employment over the past year.

Zia emphasised that the Taliban leverage ISIS to achieve both domestic and international objectives.

The AFF marked the first anniversary of the death of Akmal Amir and several AFF members with an online meeting on Sunday.

During his speech, Zia contested the Taliban's claims of victory in Afghanistan and their alleged suppression of ISIS, asserting that the group collaborates with entities like ISIS Khorasan, Ansarullah Tajikistan, the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, and the East Turkestan Islamic Movement to conduct widespread operations.

Zia highlighted the Taliban’s use of Telegram channels to recruit youths into these terrorist groups, accusing them of bolstering ISIS to fulfil their strategic objectives.

He pointed to ISIS-conducted attacks in Iran, Russia, and Kandahar city, noting that the perpetrators were recruited and trained via these Telegram channels. Zia warned that future assaults would likely follow the same pattern, exploiting social media to attract and train young militants, predominantly for ISIS, with the Taliban's full awareness.

Zia refuted the Taliban’s narrative of containing ISIS, describing the situation in Afghanistan as an "intelligence trade" that could potentially expand terrorism globally.

He sharply criticised the United States for its cooperative counterterrorism efforts with the Taliban, urging the international community to recognise the Taliban as a "terrorist group" rather than a strategic ally.

In the meeting, Zia called for unity among Taliban adversaries to initiate a concentrated three-month campaign against them, describing ISIS as a tool used by the Taliban to quash internal opposition.

Questioning the Taliban's proclaimed control over Afghanistan, Zia suggested their power was not the result of military victory but rather a negotiated "deal." As a former chief of staff of the Afghan government's army, Zia, along with several politicians, established the AFF to combat the Taliban. He also touched upon the arbitrary arrests, torture, and killings of former security personnel and women under Taliban rule, praising the bravery of women and expressing regret for not recognising their potential leadership during the republic's era.

Zia underscored the urgency of military action against the Taliban, solidifying his stance against their governance and tactics.

During this session, leaders Yasin Zia and Ahmad Massoud highlighted the unity and ongoing resistance efforts of both fronts against the Taliban.

In a significant clash on 11 April last year, the AFF lost a prominent commander, Akmal Amir, along with six of his fighters—Abdul Basir Andarabi, Qurban Ali Bamiani, Fahim Salangi, Burhanuddin Andarabi, Abdul Saboor Faryabi, and Hussein Samangani—in the Kokalami Valley of Salang district.

This virtual meeting marked the initial collaborative effort between these two key anti-Taliban military movements. Yasin Zia issued a call to action for anti-Taliban factions to unite for a three-month offensive against the group, critiquing the Taliban's security promises and their suppression of ISIS as deceptive, and accusing them of colluding with militia groups in a deceptive strategy.

Ahmad Massoud, leading the National Resistance Front, dedicated his remarks to the fallen members, asserting they are heroes of the entire nation, not just their respective fronts. He lauded the AFF's aggressive stance against the Taliban and addressed online attempts to create rifts between the NRF and AFF, stressing the deep solidarity and unity existing between them.

Massoud also praised the recent resurgence of AFF's military activities against the Taliban. After a month-long hiatus during the early Ramadan period, the AFF announced on Friday the revival of their campaign, which immediately resulted in one Taliban casualty and another injured in Kabul.

Since the Taliban's resurgence as the ruling power in Afghanistan, the AFF and NRF have emerged as formidable opposition, launching numerous attacks across various Afghan regions over the past three years.

According to IRNA, this officer was killed in a clash with drug traffickers.

Further details have not yet been released.

Hirmand county in Sistan and Baluchestan Province of Iran, shares about 110 kilometres of border with the Afghan provinces of Nimroz and Farah.

Muhriddin also warned about the situation in Afghanistan.

According to the RIA Novosti news agency, he said that the situation in Afghanistan can affect all the member states and lead to a change in the geopolitical balance across Eurasia.

The Tajik Foreign Ministry also stated that regional cooperation and security issues have been discussed in this meeting.

Foreign ministers from Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Belarus, Armenia, and Azerbaijan attended the meeting.

Muhriddin called on the member states to take more effective actions to improve the security situation in the region.

The Tajik Foreign Minister also emphasised on the need to increase the efficiency of the counter-terrorism center of the Commonwealth of Independent States.

As his country shares a border with Afghanistan, he stated that Tajikistan has been grappling with unprecedented security challenges for three decades.