As the Taliban claim to have "completely conquered" Afghanistan's Panjshir Valley, reports have indicated the involvement of Pakistan in the clashes. From providing air support to blocking roads and hindering supplies - reports indicate heavy Pakistani involvement in the fight against the last holdout region. Notably, the claims come less than a day after General Faiz Hameed, the chief of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence arrived in Kabul and extended his support to the Taliban.
A report by CNN-News18 quoted sources to contend that Pakistan is providing air support to Taliban fighters and that some Special Forces have even been airdropped to fight the Resistance. All major supplies and roads are also believed to have been blocked by the militant group.
According to a Twitter thread by journalist Habib Khan, Pakistani aircrafts are bombing the resistance in the Panjshir Valley. He also quote tweeted an individual whose profile identifies him as an Afghan Commando with the Ministry of Defense. Another tweet, by journalist Aditya Raj Kaul said that the Pakistan ISI chief was monitoring and coordinating the situation from Kabul.
Despite the Taliban's claims of victory, the Resistance on Monday insisted that the fight against the Taliban "will continue". Over the last few weeks, various Resistance leaders have also alleged Pakistani involvement. Former First Vice President Amrullah Saleh had earlier accused Pakistan of being at the “service” of Taliban. In an interview with CNN-News18, he had said that Taliban had used the neighbouring country as their support base. "Not sanctuaries, the whole of Pakistan was at the service of Taliban,” he was quoted as saying.
Hours before his death on Sunday, reports had quoted Resistance spokesperson Fahim Dashti as saying that at least a thousand terrorists had been trapped due to the blockade of an exit route, with all the attackers were killed, surrendered or captured. "Most of those arrested are foreigners and most are Pakistanis," unverified reports had quoted him as saying.
"The Taliban are not fighting with us but the Pakistani army and ISI are leading them. The Taliban are not strong enough to compete with us but the Pakistan Army is cooperating with them," read a tweet from an unverified account that is attributed to Ahmad Massoud.
