'Taliban Capturing Panjshir Is A Lie', Claim Resistance Leaders. New Govt To Be Formed In Afghanistan Today

News of Panjshir conquests circulating in Pakistani media is a lie, said Ahmad Massoud, one of the leaders who is holding the Valley.

Taliban fighters in Afghanistan (Image: AFP)

New Delhi: Amid reports of announcing a new government in Afghanistan, three Taliban sources said the Islamist militia had on Friday seized the Panjshir valley north of Kabul, the last province of Afghanistan holding out against it, reports Reuters.

"By the grace of Allah Almighty, we are in control of entire Afghanistan. The troublemakers have been defeated and Panjshir is now under our command," said one Taliban commander.

Though the reports of the Taliban capturing Panjshir valley are circulating on social media, resistance leaders have denied such claims.

Former Vice President Amrullah Saleh, one of the leaders of the opposition forces, said his side had not given up.

"There is no doubt we are in a difficult situation. We are under invasion by the Taliban," he said on a video clip posted to Twitter by a BBC World journalist, quoted Reuters

"We have held the ground, we have resisted."

Several other resistance leaders also dismissed reports of the fall of Panjshir, where thousands of fighters from regional militias and remnants of the old government's forces had massed.

"News of Panjshir conquests is circulating on Pakistani media. This is a lie," said Ahmad Massoud, who is leading the forces.

 Ahmad Massoud, the son of renowned Afghan warlord Ahmad Shah Massoud who is holding the Valley said that it would be his last day when the area would be conquered by the Taliban.

The insurgent group has been battling to extinguish the last flame of resistance in the Panjshir Valley, which held out for a decade against the Soviet Union’s occupation and also the Taliban’s first rule from 1996-2001.

Taliban to announce new govt today

Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, who is the Taliban’s diplomatic face, will lead the Afghan government, as reported by Reuters.

It was earlier speculated the insurgent group’s top spiritual leader Sheikh Haibatullah Akhundzada will control the newly-formed government.

Late Taliban founder Mullah Omar’s son Mohammad Yaqoob and Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, who served as the deputy foreign minister when the insurgents last controlled power between 1996 and 2001 in Afghanistan, will reportedly have prominent roles in the new government.

Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, deputy leader of the Taliban political office in Doha, had earlier assured that women and members from all tribes in Afghanistan will be part of the new government set-up, PTI reported.
“Any person who was part of any former Afghanistan governments during the last 20 years will not be included in the new Taliban administration,” he said.

On Friday, dozens of women protested near the presidential palace, urging the Taliban to respect the rights of women and their significant gains in education and the workforce over the past two decades.