Taliban Spokesperson Calls Pak Army Remarks ‘Provocative’

Homayoun Afghan, spokesperson for the Taliban’s Ministry of Mines and Petroleum, said a team led by local Takhar officials had been sent to assess the situation at the mining sites.

In an audio message released on Tuesday, Afghan confirmed that confrontations between miners and residents had resulted in casualties and property damage, though he did not give specific figures. He said further details would be released after the investigation is completed.

Afghanistan International reported earlier that residents of the Samti area in Chah Ab district clashed with companies linked to the Taliban over gold mining operations, setting fire to company equipment during the unrest.

Local sources said at least three residents and one Taliban member have been killed, with 16 others wounded. They said clashes were continuing and the situation was rapidly deteriorating.

Videos obtained by Afghanistan International show thick columns of smoke rising from the area of the clashes.
According to local residents, as protests intensified, officials from Taliban-linked companies left the area. Residents said the number of casualties among protesters continues to rise.

Sources said the protests were triggered by concerns over severe environmental damage and water shortages caused by what residents described as unregulated mining.

Residents of Chah Ab district had also clashed with Taliban members on Friday after mining operations began in residential areas.

The companies involved are reportedly linked to Bashar Noorzai, a major drug trafficker described by local sources as a key financial backer of the Taliban. Residents said they are protesting against the activities of three such companies operating in the area.

Maj. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said at a press conference on Tuesday that security, particularly counterterrorism, was Pakistan’s top priority last year. He described the fight against militancy as a national effort and said 2025 saw the most extensive and effective counterterrorism campaign in the country’s history.

Referring to the Doha agreement between the United States and the Afghan Taliban, Chaudhry said the accord required that Afghan territory not be used for terrorist activities. He claimed, however, that banned organisations and militant groups are now operating freely in Afghanistan, turning the country into the centre of terrorist operations in the region.

Chaudhry also said about $2.7 billion worth of advanced US military equipment remains in Afghanistan, including night-vision devices, long-range sniper rifles and other weapons. He claimed the equipment is now in the possession of the Taliban and that some of it is being sold on the black market, fuelling extremism across the region.

The military spokesperson said Afghanistan has become a safe haven for smugglers as well as regional and international terrorist groups that, he alleged, operate from Afghan soil against neighbouring countries.

Chaudhry said Pakistan had repeatedly asked the Taliban to curb the activities of these groups but, after those efforts failed, Pakistani forces struck what he described as terrorist positions across the border “within hours”.

While Pakistan had previously not denied conducting airstrikes inside Afghanistan, this marked one of the clearest public confirmations by the military of such actions.

He said the strikes demonstrated Pakistan’s determination to eliminate extremist threats, adding that the country’s counterterrorism efforts have been praised by the international community.

Chaudhry said Pakistani security forces carried out 75,175 intelligence-based operations last year, including 14,658 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 58,778 in Balochistan and 1,739 in other parts of the country.

He said 27 suicide attacks were recorded in 2025, two involving women. According to the military, 1,235 security personnel and civilians were killed during the year, while 2,597 militants were also killed.

Chaudhry said 80 percent of terrorist attacks occurred in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, arguing that a “conducive political environment” in the province had enabled militant activity. He added that terrorist incidents have risen steadily from 2021 through 2025.

Abbas Aliabadi, Iran’s minister of energy, told the ILNA news agency that the directive was issued a day earlier, adding that Iran has so far failed to receive its full water entitlement. “We held many negotiations with the Afghan side, but last year we were unable to receive our full water share,” he said.

Aliabadi said both Iran and Turkmenistan are entitled to water from the Helmand River, but noted that Afghanistan, as the upstream country, has constructed the Salma Dam, making negotiations essential to ensure water flows to the Doosti Dam.

Speaking on Tuesday, Aliabadi said he was cautiously optimistic that Iran would receive its water share this year due to improved rainfall. He added that talks with the Taliban were continuing.

Aliabadi said he has invited Afghan representatives to visit Iran on two occasions and plans to issue a third invitation. He also said an Iranian delegation would travel to Afghanistan at a later stage to pursue the issue directly and with greater urgency.

Disputes over water rights, particularly those linked to the Helmand River, have long been a source of tension between Tehran and Kabul, and have gained renewed attention since the Taliban’s return to power.

The Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry said in a statement that the Pakistan–Afghanistan Border Management Committee will be tasked with resolving border-related issues, improving coordination and facilitating dialogue and trade between the two countries.

In a letter issued on Monday, the federation announced the appointment of seven Pakistani members to the committee. It said the body would review border management challenges and propose practical solutions.

According to the letter, the committee will maintain regular communication with relevant Pakistani authorities, Afghan chambers of commerce and other stakeholders to ensure effective coordination.

Sources familiar with the matter said the Taliban have not yet named their representatives to the committee.

Pakistan–Afghanistan border crossings have remained closed since October 2025 following deadly clashes between Taliban forces and Pakistani security personnel. The prolonged closure and suspension of trade have caused losses estimated at millions of dollars each day for traders on both sides of the border, according to business groups.

According to statements issued on Tuesday by the Taliban Supreme Court, a primary court in Herat province flogged eight people on Monday, January 5, on charges of producing, buying and selling alcoholic beverages.

In a separate case, a Taliban court in Ahmad Khel district of Paktia province publicly flogged one person on charges of currency counterfeiting.

The court said each of the accused received between 30 and 39 lashes, carried out in public and in the presence of Taliban officials and local residents.

The announcement follows a statement issued a day earlier in which the Taliban Supreme Court said lower courts had publicly flogged 16 people in the provinces of Parwan, Kabul, Kunar and Balkh.

Since returning to power in August 2021, the Taliban have reinstated public corporal punishment, including floggings and executions, a practice that has drawn repeated condemnation from international human rights organisations and the United Nations.

The Taliban say the punishments are carried out in accordance with their interpretation of Islamic sharia law.