Unidentified gunmen opened fire on the Taliban’s intelligence directorate in New Faizabad city, the capital of Badakhshan province, on Saturday afternoon. The attack took place while a delegation from Kabul was holding a meeting at the facility.
The attackers fled the area after the shooting. So far, no group has claimed responsibility for the attack, and the Taliban have not commented on the incident.
Following the attack, Taliban forces placed the area around the intelligence directorate under heightened security and stationed a Humvee armored vehicle at the entrance of the building.
The incident comes as Badakhshan has witnessed increased security unrest and public protests in recent weeks. On Saturday, residents of Yaftal-e Payin district held a demonstration against what they described as “oppression and mistreatment” by the Taliban. The protest was met with gunfire from Taliban forces, resulting in casualties, although the exact number of victims has not yet been determined.
Tensions in Yaftal-e Payin escalated after the district was briefly taken over by the newly established “Homeland Army” front on the morning of 26 Saratan. The group claimed that it had disarmed Taliban forces, raised its flag over government buildings, and later withdrew from the area.
During the Yaftal-e Payin protests, some demonstrators called for the withdrawal of “non-local Taliban” from Badakhshan. In recent days, the Afghanistan Freedom Front has also reported direct clashes with the Taliban in Zebak district, while the National Resistance Front announced that it had killed a Taliban member in Kuran wa Munjan district.
In addition to activities by anti-Taliban fronts, Badakhshan is facing other security challenges. Internal disputes among Taliban members and attacks by ISIS-Khorasan have been cited as among the factors affecting the province’s security situation.
On 6 Asad, Zabihullah Amiri, the head of Badakhshan’s Information and Culture Department, was killed in an armed attack in Baharak district. ISIS-Khorasan claimed responsibility for the attack.
Writer:Salima Aryaei
