Taliban, Iranian Health Ministers Hold Talks In Tehran

Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid announced on Tuesday that the raid took place on Monday night in the 15th security district of the Afghan capital. He said Taliban forces discovered and seized a cache of weapons and ammunition at the site.

Taliban sources told Afghanistan International that the operation lasted several hours and involved sustained gunfire. Videos from the area captured the sound of heavy shooting during the raid.

Al-Mirsad, a media outlet affiliated with the Taliban, also reported that two individuals were killed in the raid, citing unnamed sources.

However, doubts have been raised about the nature of the operation. Sarah Adams, a former CIA officer, previously alleged that a compound in the 15th district, claimed by the Taliban to be an ISIS hideout, actually belonged to a Taliban intelligence unit. She described such operations as potentially staged, aimed at garnering approval from the United States and the international community.

The Taliban has not commented on these allegations. Independent verification of the identities of those killed and the circumstances of the raid remains unavailable.

At least four independent sources confirmed that protesters chanted “Long live Dostum”, a reference to Abdul Rashid Dostum, the former vice president and leader of the Junbish-e Milli party, as they rallied on Monday and entered the district’s police command compound.

The protest was sparked by the arrest of several young men involved in a confrontation over the alleged harassment of girls during Eid celebrations in Dawlat Abad. Demonstrators gathered outside the Taliban police command to demand the release of the detainees. In response, Taliban forces reportedly detained more protesters, escalating tensions.

Multiple sources said some protesters forced their way into the police command building, prompting a swift and forceful reaction from Taliban personnel. The district centre has since been placed under lockdown, with Taliban fighters, many in civilian clothing, reportedly conducting house-to-house searches in search of demonstrators.

One source told Afghanistan International that dozens more have been arrested in these ongoing operations, and that residents are now afraid to leave their homes due to fear of arrest.

Video footage obtained by Afghanistan International shows large crowds gathered around the police command building, though the exact number of those detained remains unclear. Estimates vary widely, with one local source claiming around 100 people have been taken into custody, while another source close to the Taliban puts the figure at 35.

The Taliban has yet to issue an official statement on the incident.

During a visit to Washington, the Pakistan People’s Party chairman said his country continues to grapple with the consequences of the US exit, including the proliferation of American-made weapons left behind in Afghanistan.

“Pakistan has been harmed by the manner in which the United States exited Afghanistan,” Bhutto Zardari said, according to a report by The Economic Times on Tuesday.

In remarks that indirectly criticised both Washington and regional dynamics, the former minister stressed the need for a renewed international strategy. “We talk about terror, we talk about Afghanistan, we talk about other things. That’s what we’ve spent the last couple of decades of this relationship discussing,” he said.

Bhutto Zardari called for enhanced regional and international cooperation to confront the lingering threat of terrorism. “We need more cooperation, regional and international, on what we are going to do now, post-Kabul, to deal with the remnants of terrorism that are left over,” he stated.

Islamabad has repeatedly accused the Taliban of distributing American weapons to extremist groups, a charge the Taliban denies. His comments come as Pakistan and the Taliban-led Afghan government appear to be strengthening diplomatic ties, despite ongoing security concerns.

The forum comes amid ongoing criticism of the Taliban’s education policies, particularly the regime’s ban on girls attending school beyond the sixth grade, a restriction that has been in place since the group returned to power nearly four years ago.

According to the ministry, the delegation aims to seek international cooperation to support Afghanistan’s education sector.

Since taking control of the country, the Taliban has barred girls from secondary schools and universities, a move that has drawn widespread condemnation from both domestic and international human rights groups for violating the fundamental right to education.

Despite repeated calls from the international community and Afghan civil society to lift the restrictions, the Taliban has so far refused to reverse its stance.

In an open letter, the organisations claimed Rahimi is not acting as a neutral diplomat and has expressed loyalty to the Taliban. They raised concerns over his continued presence at the Afghan Embassy in The Hague, particularly in light of Afghanistan’s ongoing human rights crisis, including widespread violations of women’s rights.

Rahimi, who previously served under the former Afghan government, was among the first officials to declare cooperation with the Taliban following their takeover in 2021. According to sources cited by Afghanistan International, Rahimi receives between $20,000 and $30,000 per month from the group.

He has reportedly travelled to Kabul and met with Taliban officials to discuss ongoing cooperation. Rahimi also came under criticism after removing the national emblem and flag of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan from the embassy’s social media platforms and website. Following public backlash, the symbols were later restored.

In the letter, obtained by Afghanistan International, the signatory organisations accused Rahimi of violating diplomatic neutrality and misusing embassy resources in Europe to unofficially represent Taliban interests.

The groups urged the Dutch government to clarify the legal and political status of the Afghan Embassy in The Hague and conduct a thorough review of its operations in line with the Netherlands’ obligations under international human rights conventions.

They stated that, should any formal affiliation with the Taliban be confirmed, the embassy’s diplomatic activities must be suspended.

The organisations warned that continuing to accommodate a figure allegedly aligned with a group accused of widespread human rights abuses would undermine the Netherlands’ credibility as a defender of international human rights.

The controversy comes as the International Criminal Court in The Hague investigates potential arrest warrants for senior Taliban leaders, including Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada and Chief Justice Abdul Hakim Haqqani. The presence of key international legal institutions in the city, they noted, further underscores the importance of scrutinising the Afghan Embassy’s operations.