DID Press: Atta Mohammad Noor, leader of Jamiat-e Islami and former governor of Balkh, has criticized some armed groups opposing the Taliban, saying Afghanistan’s struggle for freedom should be based on the independent will of its people and should not turn the country into an arena for foreign powers.
Noor said in a post on X that freedom for Afghanistan can only be achieved through the “firm, independent will and courageous action of the people.” He warned that becoming “foreigners’ foot soldiers” would only result in young Afghans being sacrificed and the country’s crisis being prolonged.
He described the position as the product of four decades of his experience in war and politics, warning that political and military groups’ dependence on external powers could once again turn Afghanistan into an arena for competition among foreign states.
Noor’s comments come as several armed groups opposing the Taliban, including the National Resistance Front, the Afghanistan Freedom Front and the Afghanistan United Front, have recently intensified their activities against the Taliban. The groups describe themselves as national and independent movements and say their objective is to change Afghanistan’s political situation, while the Taliban accuse them of having ties to foreign countries.
Meanwhile, Taliban-affiliated media have reported clashes between Taliban forces and the Afghanistan Freedom Front in Nuristan. The Taliban has claimed to have inflicted casualties and detained members of the group, although the details have not been independently and fully verified.