Taliban Fire on Badakhshan Protest, Leaving One Dead

DID Press: Taliban authorities have confirmed that residents of Yaftal-e Payin district in Afghanistan’s Badakhshan province staged a protest on Saturday after a woman was allegedly searched by Taliban personnel. Local sources said Taliban forces opened fire to disperse the demonstrators, killing at least one person and wounding several others.

According to Taliban police spokesman Ehsanullah Kamgar, the protest began after residents reacted to what he described as a misunderstanding surrounding the search of a man and a woman traveling on a motorcycle at a security checkpoint on suspicion of transporting narcotics.

Kamgar said the male passenger claimed that the woman had been subjected to a body search, prompting local residents to gather and attack the checkpoint. He accused what he called “agitators” of exploiting public sentiment but did not provide an official casualty figure.

However, local residents and hospital sources said Taliban forces fired live ammunition to disperse the crowd. According to those sources, at least one protester was killed and several others were injured. The reported casualties have not been independently verified.

Residents of Yaftal-e Payin said the demonstrations reflected broader frustration over what they described as increasing Taliban repression in recent weeks, rather than the checkpoint incident alone.

Badakhshan has witnessed a series of security incidents in recent days, including growing activity by anti-Taliban armed groups, internal Taliban tensions, and attacks claimed by the Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP).

Earlier this week, the Taliban’s provincial director of information and culture, Zabihullah Amiri, was killed in an armed attack in Baharak district. ISKP later claimed responsibility for the killing.