Taliban Warns Group Not to “Disgrace History”
DID Press: Taliban Defense Minister Mohammad Yaqoob Mujahid warned members of the group against conduct that could lead the public to label them “irrational,” urging officials to consider how their actions will be judged by future generations. Speaking at a ceremony marking the anniversary of the Soviet forces’ withdrawal from Afghanistan, he said the Taliban must think about the country’s future and avoid leaving behind a legacy that “future generations would be ashamed of.”
He said the movement should strive to create what he described as a “white, honorable history,” rather than one written in “black or red,” expressing concern that history would pass harsh judgment on the group’s record. Analysts say such remarks come amid mounting domestic and international criticism of the restrictive policies imposed under the leadership of Hibatullah Akhundzada.
Mujahid also warned that those who used any means to seize power and alienated the public “now lie in graveyards,” adding that without historical awareness, the value of today’s relative security and calm may be misunderstood, creating the impression that Afghanistan has always been at war.
Calling for unity, he urged Taliban members to set aside internal disputes to prevent the country from once again descending into “occupation, civil war and chaos,” and cautioned against ethnic and linguistic chauvinism within the administration. Addressing Taliban cabinet members, he warned that narrow-mindedness drives officials toward personal gain, money and power, urging them instead to adopt a broader outlook.
He further said some countries benefit from instability in Afghanistan, but sought to reassure the region and the international community that Afghanistan poses no threat to any country. The Taliban, he added, seek political and economic relations based on “mutual respect,” while rejecting what he described as subservience to external powers, insisting the group remains independent within the framework of religion and national interests.