Afghan resistance in Panjshir depends entirely on international support, Habib-ur-Rahman Hekmatyar says

The prospects and effectiveness of Afghan resistance in Panjshir depend entirely on the international support of its actions, Habib-ur-Rahman Hekmatyar, the son of the Islamic Party’s leader Gulbuddin Hekmatyar and head of the Islamic Party’s headquarters, told TASS on Wednesday. It may be noted that in 2003 the Russian Supreme Court declared the Taliban to be a terrorist organization and its activities are outlawed nationwide.

Speaking to Russian News Agency TASS, Habib-ur-Rahman pointed out that there is a resistance and a will to fight in Panjshir “but it will depend on foreign support. If they get foreign support then they can resist but whether it will be long time or short time, we cannot say anything because the Ghani Government had the support of the whole world for twenty years but couldn’t resist for 20 days.”

Habib-ur-Rahman noted that the party leadership does not “have any direct contacts with leaders of the upcoming resistance like Ahmad Massoud or Amrullah Saleh”, he informed TASS. He reiterated that the “Taliban has besieged Panjshir in order to pressurize them to resolve the war peacefully.” If the talks fail, “then they have the option of force which won’t be good” for either side or the country, he remarked.

He also reiterated that Panjshir has been the most powerful province over the last twenty years in terms of good positions in the government and the developed security sector. He noted that the province accumulated a large number of weapons and military equipment brought from other provinces “which means they were expecting this turn of event],” he told TASS.

After the Biden administration announced the end of Washington’s 20-year-long military operation in Afghanistan and the launch of its troop pullout, the Taliban (outlawed in Russia) embarked on an offensive against Afghan government forces.

On August 15, Taliban fighters swept into Kabul without encountering any resistance, and gained full control over the Afghan capital within a few hours. Afghanistan’s President Ashraf Ghani said he had stepped down to prevent any bloodshed and subsequently fled the country. Vice President Amrullah Saleh announced that, in the absence of the head of state, the constitution empowered him to become the caretaker president and urged the Afghan people to join the resistance against the Taliban radical movement. At present, Western nations are evacuating their citizens and embassy staff.