Turkmenistan & Taliban Sign Economic Cooperation Agreements

McCaul expressed his eagerness to hear about Massoud's efforts to liberate the Afghan people from Taliban control.

On Friday, McCaul shared on X social media platform that he and his team have maintained ongoing communication with Massoud and the NRF for years.

He emphasised, “The Taliban’s terrorist regime has destroyed any progress made on human rights in Afghanistan."

McCaul reaffirmed his support for the Afghan people and his opposition to the Taliban rule, describing the mission of the NRF as "honourable”.

In addition to the upcoming meeting, McCaul announced that the House Foreign Affairs Committee will release its report on the US withdrawal from Afghanistan on September 9, with Ahmad Massoud expected to be present during the report's presentation.

McCaul also praised journalist and former US Navy member Shawn Ryan for his efforts to draw attention to Ahmad Massoud and the NRF.

Ryan recently launched a campaign to cut financial aid to the Taliban and invited Massoud to testify before the Congress, with tens of thousands signing the petition.

Ahmad Massoud is currently in the United States. The National Resistance Front's head of foreign relations, Ali Maisam Nazary, welcomed McCaul's remarks, stating that the Front looks forward to the meeting with the leader of the front.

McCaul has been a vocal critic of the Taliban, consistently condemning their actions over the past three years.

He has also been a strong opponent of the chaotic US withdrawal from Afghanistan under the Biden administration, with the House Foreign Affairs Committee summoning several US officials involved in the process.

On Saturday, Radio Television Afghanistan (RTA), under Taliban control, reported that these cameras have been placed in important and busy areas.

Earlier, the Taliban's Ministry of Interior had stated that the security cameras would be connected to the control room of the Taliban police command in Parwan.

This move comes amid occasional attacks on Taliban forces in Parwan province.

The National Resistance Front and the Afghanistan Freedom Front have claimed responsibility for these armed attacks.

Enayatullah Khwarizmi, Taliban’s spokesperson for the Ministry of Defence, stated that comments made by a Taliban defence official about purchasing Russian anti-aircraft equipment had been "distorted”.

Previously, a Taliban official had mentioned the group's intention to acquire Russian air defence systems.

Abdul Basir Saberi, head of the logistics department of the Taliban's Ministry of Defence, had said that the group needs Russian air defence systems.

He had emphasised that whenever conditions allow, the Taliban would purchase Russian-made equipment.

Following this news, Khwarizmi, the spokesperson for the Taliban's Ministry of Defence, wrote on X social media platform that there have been no talks with Russian officials about purchasing air defence weapons, and that Saberi's comments had been "distorted”.

The Taliban does not control Afghanistan's airspace, and over the past three years, the group's officials have criticised the US for violating Afghan airspace.

The US Department of Defence has stated that the Taliban's inability to control Afghanistan's airspace is the group's own problem.

This meeting comes amid the enforcement of a new "Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice" law that criminalises looking at and speaking to "non-mahram" women.

On Friday, August 30, the OIC reported that Muttaqi met with Tarig Ali Bakheet, OIC Secretary-General's Special Envoy for Afghanistan; Koutoub Moustapha Sano, International Islamic Fiqh Academy; and Afnan Al-Shuaiby during the 50th session of the Council of Foreign Ministers.

The OIC stated that during the meeting, discussions focused on girls' education and the participation of Afghan women in public life, in accordance with the organisation's resolutions.

This meeting took place as the new "Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice" law, recently signed by Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, declared women's voices as “awrah” (intimate par to body) and criminalised looking at or speaking with non-mahram women.

According to this law, even a woman's voice during Quran recitation is considered “awrah”.

The OIC reported that the discussions with Amir Khan Muttaqi covered topics such as tolerance, moderation in Islam, women's education, and participation in public life. However, it was not specified whether the new law was addressed in these talks.

Khan stated that his government actively engaged with the Taliban regarding cross-border terrorism.

He rejected claims of sheltering "terrorists" during his administration and noted that after the fall of the Afghan government and the Taliban's return to Kabul in August 2021, Pakistan requested the Taliban to eliminate the TTP. He added that the Taliban was ready to cooperate with the Pakistani government.

Khan also acknowledged that General Faiz Hameed, the former head of the ISI, was in contact with the Taliban about suppressing the TTP.

The leader of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party (PTI) argued that the Pakistani Interior Minister's claims about "terrorists" operating outside Afghanistan suggest that accusations against PTI are unfounded.

He also attributed unrest in Balochistan and attacks in the Kacha region to the Pakistani military.

While Khan discusses the Taliban's cooperation in combating the TTP during his tenure, Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid mentioned last week that the group is willing to mediate talks between the Pakistani government and the TTP. Mujahid stated that the Taliban could facilitate negotiations between the two parties.

However, Pakistan's Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, dismissed the notion of talks with the TTP and called on the Taliban to extradite TTP members to Pakistan.