Sepah-e Mihan Commander Speaks After Yaftal Fall, Vows To Put Freedom First

Shekay and Nusay are located in Badakhshan’s Darwaz region, where Fateh is also from.

At the height of the dispute, Fateh said he commanded thousands of armed men. People close to him claimed he had around 3,500 fighters in Nusay and a significant number of forces in Shekay.

Informed sources estimate that more than 5,000 weapons could potentially be collected from forces affiliated with Fateh.

At the same time, reports indicate that the Taliban has deployed special forces and intelligence units to Badakhshan in recent weeks in an effort to bring the situation under control.

A Taliban intelligence unit involving around 100 vehicles has taken part in the operation. Some sources believe part of the deployment may have been aimed at potentially arresting Fateh, although this has not been officially confirmed.

Tensions in Badakhshan intensified after Fateh and his forces refused to carry out orders from senior Taliban officials.

Negotiations were then launched with the mediation of Fasihuddin Fitrat, the Taliban’s army chief, in an effort to resolve the crisis. Fateh was eventually transferred from Badakhshan to Kabul.

Taliban Replaces Officials in Nusay and Jurm

Amid the escalating tensions, the Taliban also made changes to Badakhshan’s security and administrative structure.

The group recently removed the district governor and police chief of Nusay and appointed new officials to both posts. It also named a new police chief for Jurm district.

Sources say the situation in Nusay and Shekay remains under close Taliban surveillance and efforts to disarm forces loyal to Juma Khan Fateh are continuing.

The sources told Afghanistan International on Wednesday, 22 July, that restrictions on Karzai have intensified in recent months, with tighter controls imposed on his domestic travel and political meetings.

According to information received, Karzai has tried several times in recent years to travel to Kandahar to meet relatives, tribal elders and friends, but the Taliban has not allowed him to visit the province.

One source said the Taliban is concerned that if Karzai travels to Kandahar or other provinces, he could receive a large public welcome, potentially revive his political influence and standing.

Another source said restrictions on his social and political activities have also intensified. According to the source, he cannot meet domestic or foreign figures, diplomats or political leaders without permission.

The sources also confirmed that the Taliban prevented Karzai from attending some Ashura ceremonies and from participating in the funeral of Ali Khamenei, the former leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

According to the sources, some senior Taliban officials have told the former president that he should refrain from making public comments about the country’s political situation, girls’ education and other issues.

Karzai, Afghanistan’s former president, remained in the country after the Taliban returned to power. During this period, he made a limited number of foreign trips, including to Germany, reportedly for annual medical examinations.

He also travelled to the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.

Stéphane Dujarric said at a press briefing on Tuesday, 21 July, that the floods had caused extensive damage to homes, public buildings and commercial properties.

The UN spokesman also said aid operations had begun, with mobile health teams deployed to flood-affected areas, medical facilities placed on alert, and food, medical supplies and other emergency assistance mobilised for those affected.

According to the United Nations, the immediate needs of affected communities include emergency shelter, food, healthcare, essential items and psychosocial support.

The Taliban said a day earlier that the death toll from the Nuristan floods had risen to 23. According to Taliban officials, the bodies of 15 victims had been recovered, more than 100 people remained missing, and 80 others had been injured.

Sources told Afghanistan International earlier that more than 40 people had been killed in the Nuristan floods.

Taliban officials have also said search-and-rescue operations and damage assessments are continuing, and that casualty and damage figures may change.

Dobrindt said in Berlin on Monday that deporting offenders to countries such as Afghanistan was necessary and unavoidable and that the government would not retreat from the policy.

He stressed that society has the right to expect criminal asylum seekers to be deported.

According to Deutsche Welle, the remarks came after a 22-year-old student was killed in a knife attack in the city of Trier. Police arrested a 22-year-old Afghan national on suspicion of carrying out the attack.

Initial investigations indicate that the suspect had mental health problems and had previously received treatment at a psychiatric facility.

Referring to the case, Germany’s interior minister said some people with mental disorders also commit serious crimes and that society cannot simply accept such situations.

Responding to calls to consider defendants’ mental health, Dobrindt said Germany could not be expected to take responsibility for all people worldwide suffering from mental illness or trauma.

Contacts With the Taliban Over Deportations Continue

Since taking office as interior minister, Dobrindt has pushed for tougher migration policies and the deportation of convicted asylum seekers.

The German government has established technical contacts with Taliban officials to facilitate the deportation of Afghan nationals.

Berlin previously approved the work of two Taliban consular staff at Afghanistan’s diplomatic missions in Germany and has said four more employees are expected to be sent to the country soon.

Germany has stressed that this cooperation does not amount to recognition of the Taliban and is intended only to provide consular services to Afghan citizens and facilitate the deportation of convicted asylum seekers.

The protesters told Afghanistan International that mining workshops belonging to low-income individuals have been shut for about a month, while sites linked to powerful figures continue to operate.

They alleged that those workshops had obtained permission to extract minerals by paying bribes to the Taliban. According to the protesters, the situation has left hundreds of families facing serious financial hardship.

Hibatullah Akhundzada, the Taliban leader, has issued a decree banning what the group calls illegal mining.

One worker, who asked not to be named because of security concerns, told Afghanistan International that the Taliban had collected three months’ worth of operating fees from workers before mining began, even though the payment was supposed to be made only after extraction and the discovery of gold.

According to information from sources, protesters who gathered on Tuesday outside the Taliban’s mining department building in Badakhshan were threatened with weapons, while some were beaten.

Workers said they struggled to enter the building to make their concerns heard, but none of the Taliban officials responded to their demands and some treated them badly.

One protesting worker said that whenever workers approach Taliban officials to seek solutions to their problems, no attention is paid to their living conditions, and their grievances are not addressed.

The exact number of protesters is not known, but images received by Afghanistan International show dozens of workers taking part in the gathering. The Taliban has not yet commented on the protest.

Disputes over gold mining in Takhar and Badakhshan have intensified in recent months and have, in some cases, led to clashes between local residents and Taliban forces.