In the message published on Monday on the X account of Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid to mark Eid al-Fitr, Akhundzada congratulated Afghans and Muslims worldwide and stressed the importance of Ramadan prayers, piety, charity, support for the Taliban system and unity among the people.
In his first message since the outbreak of clashes between the Taliban and Pakistan, he only emphasised the need to preserve unity but did not refer to the conflict.
The Taliban leader also made no mention of the war involving the United States and Israel against Iran.
Instead, he spoke about what he described as improvements in Afghanistan’s security under the Islamic Emirate and called on the public to support officials to strengthen the system and avoid divisions.
However, border clashes between the Taliban and Pakistan, as well as air and artillery strikes, are continuing, with both sides accusing each other of killing civilians.
According to the United Nations, dozens of civilians in Afghanistan have been killed or wounded in the fighting, and tens of thousands have been displaced.
Akhundzada generally called on other countries to respect the values of the Afghan people and not interfere in the country’s internal affairs, though he did not name any specific country.
His message also made no reference to the situation and rights of women and girls in Afghanistan, an issue that has drawn strong international criticism of the Taliban government in recent years because of sweeping restrictions imposed on them.
The Taliban leader’s silence over Pakistan’s attacks on Afghanistan has prompted reactions from some political figures.
Taliban leader Urges Countries Not To Interfere
In the message attributed to him, Akhundzada said: We ask all sides to respect the beliefs and values of the Afghan people and not to interfere in our internal affairs.
Without naming any country, he added that the Taliban administration considers wrong actions against Muslims anywhere in the world and violations of their rights to be oppression and condemns them in the strongest terms.
In another part of his message, the Taliban leader called on religious scholars to guide the thinking of young people.
He said clerics have a responsibility to fully cooperate with the Taliban administration in shaping the views of youth in order to prevent corruption.
Despite global opposition to the Taliban’s morality laws, Akhundzada said all decrees, particularly those issued by the Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, must be enforced.
He said inspectors from the ministry are currently working to reform society, describing it as one of the major objectives of the Taliban administration.
The Taliban leader also claimed that full security has been established in Afghanistan. In the message released by spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid, he said: The people of Afghanistan are living in better security than ever before.
