Republic Front Claims Four Attacks on Taliban Positions in Bamyan

DID Press: Local sources and reports indicate that Taliban positions and personnel in Afghanistan’s Bamyan province have been targeted at least four times over the past four months by the Republic Front, highlighting the expansion of armed opposition activity into a province that was considered among Afghanistan’s most secure areas during the former republic.

Bamyan maintained relatively high levels of security during nearly two decades of republican rule and fell to the Taliban in 2021 without major fighting. However, the province had experienced sporadic attacks and clashes during the final years of the previous government.

Since the Taliban returned to power, the group has expanded its military and administrative presence in Bamyan. Nevertheless, the Republic Front has claimed responsibility for several attacks against Taliban positions in recent months.

According to local sources, the group has carried out four attacks in Bamyan over the past four months. In two incidents, Taliban security posts and an ammunition depot at the entrances to Sayghan and Kahmard districts were targeted with rockets. In two other attacks, Taliban military units and security posts in the Duzdan Cheshma area of Yakawlang No. 1 district and the Badkhana Pass were targeted.

Two days ago, a Taliban member of the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice was also killed in an attack at the football field in Bamyan city. The Republic Front claimed responsibility for the incident in a statement.

The reported attacks come despite the Taliban’s repeated claims that they have established nationwide security. The expansion of attacks against Taliban personnel and positions in provinces including Kandahar, Zabul, Herat, northern Afghanistan, Kabul and now Bamyan suggests that armed opposition groups continue to operate in several parts of the country.

Bamyan, long regarded as one of Afghanistan’s relatively peaceful provinces, is now emerging as another area where anti-Taliban groups are seeking to challenge the group’s security presence.