Carried Out More Than 500,000 Security Operations In 2025, Says Taliban

This is while demonstrations entered a second week across the country.

Responding to protests sparked by soaring currency prices, Khamenei said the complaints raised by shopkeepers were legitimate but drew a clear distinction between protesters and rioters.

“Protest is justified, but protest is different from rioting,” he said. “We will talk to protesters, but talking to rioters is of no use.” He added that “rioters must be put in their place”.

Khamenei described protests by shopkeepers over the sharp rise in the price of the US dollar as “justified”, but claimed it was unacceptable for what he called “threatened individuals and enemy mercenaries” to stand behind demonstrators and chant slogans against Islam, Iran and the Islamic Republic.

The supreme leader blamed the surge in the dollar’s value on “the enemy” and called on Iran’s president to address the issue.

Last week, a record-breaking fall in the national currency triggered a fresh wave of protests across Iran. On Sunday, the US dollar briefly traded above 144,000 tomans, prompting shopkeepers and traders to take to the streets in several cities.

Over the past seven days, the demonstrations spread nationwide and were met with a crackdown by Iran’s security forces.

Speaking on Saturday, January 3, Khamenei said Iran would not back down under pressure. “We will not retreat in the face of the enemy,” he said. “By relying on God and with confidence in the support of the people, we will bring the enemy to its knees.”

This comes after growing criticism of the group’s internal divisions and governance practices.

In a statement released on Saturday, the Taliban’s Directorate for the Oversight and Implementation of Decrees said Akhundzada had issued 14 new decrees. According to the statement, two of the decrees specifically stress the need to strengthen mutual trust within the Taliban, while another instructs members not to interfere in one another’s affairs.

In one directive, Akhundzada said the Taliban are facing a “major test” and urged his forces to avoid what he described as arrogance, pride, self-admiration, oppression and betrayal.

The decrees come as criticism has mounted over what rights groups and observers describe as ethnic and factional practices within the Taliban. Akhundzada again instructed his followers to “strictly avoid ethnic, regional, linguistic and factional discrimination” and warned against actions that could sow distrust within the group’s ranks.

Since returning to power in 2021, the Taliban have filled many senior government posts with loyalists and close associates, while sidelining professional and technical staff from state institutions. The United Nations has repeatedly criticised what it describes as the Taliban’s ethnically driven approach to governance.

Akhundzada also warned Taliban officials against actions that could undermine internal cohesion, as reports have emerged in recent months of disputes and occasional clashes among Taliban members.

In other parts of the decrees, Akhundzada reiterated the importance of enforcing the Taliban’s policy of promoting virtue and preventing vice and urged officials not to misuse or betray public funds.

The directives were issued as Akhundzada himself faces accusations of ethnic and linguistic bias. In a report published recently, the UN secretary-general said the Taliban leader has continued to appoint and reshuffle loyalists, noting that those selected are “all men and predominantly Pashtun”.

Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban’s chief spokesperson, said the group values its relations with India and wants to expand cooperation, particularly in healthcare and commerce.

Mujahid thanked India for its humanitarian assistance, including the supply of vaccines, medicines and food aid, and said Afghanistan’s needs require sustained dialogue and stronger bilateral relations.

Speaking to Radio Hurriyat, a Taliban-affiliated outlet, Mujahid said significant progress had been made in relations with New Delhi and that the trend was expected to continue.

His comments followed recent remarks by India’s foreign minister, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, who highlighted centuries-old ties between the two countries and described India’s policy towards Afghanistan as people-centric and community-focused.

Relations between the Taliban and India have grown closer amid rising tensions between the Taliban administration and Pakistan. In recent months, the Taliban’s foreign minister, as well as the ministers of commerce and industry and public health, have visited New Delhi.

Working with India and Iran, the Taliban are also seeking alternative trade routes to reduce dependence on Pakistani ports and goods. During visits to New Delhi and Tehran, Taliban officials signed cooperation agreements with authorities in both countries.

India has meanwhile upgraded its diplomatic mission in Kabul to embassy level and expanded its humanitarian and development assistance to Afghanistan.

The growing engagement between India and the Taliban has raised concerns in Pakistan. Islamabad has accused the Taliban and India of supporting Baloch separatist groups and the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, allegations the Taliban have denied. Mujahid has repeatedly said Pakistan should not expect to influence or control the Taliban’s domestic or foreign policy.

Speaking during an interaction with students at an Indian university, Jaishankar said India and Afghanistan share centuries-old historical links and that relations between their peoples have continued regardless of political shifts.

Responding to a question from an Afghan student about his recent meeting with Amir Khan Muttaqi, Jaishankar described the talks as positive. He said India is cooperating with Afghanistan in areas including development projects, food assistance and health services.

Muttaqi visited New Delhi from October 9 to 16, 2025, marking the first visit by a senior Taliban official to India since the Taliban returned to power in 2021. The visit was made possible after the United Nations Security Council granted Muttaqi a temporary travel exemption despite international sanctions.

The visit coincided with Pakistani airstrikes on Kabul and several Afghan border provinces. In the months that followed, engagement between India and the Taliban administration gradually expanded.

After Muttaqi’s trip, the Taliban’s commerce minister and public health minister also travelled to New Delhi. India later pledged additional support for Afghanistan, particularly in the pharmaceutical sector, after the suspension of medicine imports from Pakistan.

Jaishankar said India’s approach remains focused on supporting the Afghan people and addressing humanitarian and development needs, regardless of political circumstances.

The latest incident occurred on Thursday evening in Faizabad, the capital of Badakhshan, where armed men shot and killed Mohammad Shah, an Ismaili resident originally from Shighnan district. Shah, who worked for a private office in the province, was attacked in the Dasht-e-Qargh area while returning home from a bakery, according to eyewitnesses.

Local sources told Afghanistan International on Friday that another Ismaili man, identified as Khodaydad, was shot dead two days earlier in Warsuj district of Takhar. He was killed in front of his wife and children, the sources said.

According to local residents, Khodaydad was a relative of Ghulam Naser, who was killed about 20 days earlier after travelling with Zahidullah, a former Taliban intelligence chief in Warsuj district, to search for gold. Following Naser’s killing, Khodaydad filed a complaint against Zahidullah. Two days later, Khodaydad was himself killed, the sources said.

Local sources have accused members of the Taliban of involvement in the killings, though no evidence has been independently verified.

Taliban authorities have not commented publicly on the incidents.

The killings have heightened concerns among members of Afghanistan’s Ismaili community, a religious minority concentrated in parts of Badakhshan and other northern provinces, amid ongoing security and accountability challenges under Taliban rule.