Ahmad Massoud, leader of the National Resistance Front in Afghanistan’s Panjshir, has rejected the Taliban government’s offer of safe passage to the country. He rejected the offer on the grounds that he does not need permission from the Taliban to enter his own country.
On Tuesday, Ahmad Massoud, warlord Ismail Khan and Afghanistan’s acting foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi met in Iran’s Tehran. The meeting was the first rendezvous between the Taliban and their opponents since the militant group’s takeover of the country last year.
At the meeting, Amir Khan Muttaqi of the Taliban government told Ahmad Massoud that he and his followers can return to Afghanistan and assured him they would not be harmed, sources said.
Ali Maisam Nazary, head of foreign relations of the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan, told India Today, “We rejected his offer. They are not owners of Afghanistan to allow or prevent us from entering our country.”
He added, “We control many parts of the Hindu Kush and Commander Massoud can return anytime he wants. He will be back in Afghanistan once his trips end.”
NATIONAL RESISTANCE FRONT
After Kabul fell to the Taliban, Panjshir Valley which housed the National Resistance Front was the last bastion standing against the new rulers. While many resistance leaders have been killed, the top leadership has managed to survive the Taliban’s onslaught.
However, a Taliban attack in September appeared to have ended the resistance’s plans of taking back Kabul. Most leaders are reportedly out of Afghanistan at the moment, including former vice president Amrullah Saleh.
The National Resistance Front is led by Ahmad Massoud, son of anti-Taliban fighter Ahmad Shah Massoud who was assassinated in 2001.
As the resistance continues, several prominent leaders of previous US-backed Afghan governments, including former president Hamid Karzai and ex-head of the National Reconciliation Council Abdullah Abdullah, have stayed back in Kabul.
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