In late November, the Taliban accused their neighbors of causing the deaths of 10 civilians, including nine children, following a shootout between Afghan and Pakistani forces. In response, the radical group launched its own attacks along the 2,640-kilometer border that separates the two countries, the so-called Durand Line.
The Pakistani armed forces denied the allegations. Islamabad insists on attacking terrorist groups seeking refuge in Afghan territory.
Specifically, the Taliban’s response brought crowds together in cities like Khost and Jalalabad, where the fighters were greeted with garlands. Videos portraying the Taliban as defenders of Afghanistan’s territorial integrity went viral on social media.
Change in perception?
The clashes appeared to change the Taliban’s internal image, with many on social media praising the group’s decisive response to Pakistan. Even former Afghan security officials (who were once bitter opponents of radical Islamists) expressed support.
Khushal Sadat, a former deputy interior minister who fought the Taliban for years, was one of those voices. Sadat noted that the current rulers responded to the attacks much more forcefully than the previous Western-backed government.
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Bismillah Taban, security analyst and former Afghan government official, told DW that the Taliban acted quickly. “His supporters tried to use the opportunity to whitewash the image of the Taliban,” he said, adding that many regime officials expanded the reach of the images.
Despite this apparent wave of public praise, many experts, including members of the former Afghan government, maintain that the Taliban cannot gain legitimacy by confronting Pakistan.
Mujib Rahman Rahimi, who held senior positions before the Taliban came to power, said the group’s conflict with Pakistani forces does not affect Afghanistan as a whole.
“The clashes are neither a war of the legitimate government of Afghanistan nor a war of the Afghan people with Pakistan,” he told DW.
The Taliban as Pakistani puppets
Rahimi and other former officials argue that Pakistan helped found and supported the Taliban, so these current clashes reflect a rift between the group and its sponsors rather than a fight between nations.
Abbas Basir, a former education minister, thinks similarly, saying the Taliban’s actions are not driven by national interests but by the group’s decision to host militants who are causing instability on both sides of the border.
Specifically, the Afghan Taliban is accused of harboring Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an armed organization ideologically allied with the Taliban and focused on fighting the state of Pakistan.
“By harboring the TTP, the Taliban have created the conditions for this confrontation with Pakistan,” said Basir, who claims that ordinary Afghans also reject the TTP’s presence in the country.
How did the old allies fall out?
Just a few years ago, relations between the Taliban and the Pakistani military high command were anything but hostile.
In the days after the fall of Afghanistan’s Western-backed government in August 2021, then-Pakistani military intelligence chief General Faiz Hameed was photographed drinking tea at a Kabul hotel with Taliban leaders. At the time, the image was interpreted as evidence of Islamabad’s influence over the group.
Today, Pakistan accuses the Taliban of allowing members of the TTP to plan and coordinate attacks against Pakistani security forces from Afghanistan. The Taliban deny these allegations and say they do not allow any group to use the country’s territory to threaten third parties.
Tensions peaked in October following the Pakistani bombings in Kabul. Taliban fighters then attacked Pakistani border posts, which were responded to with mortar fire and drones. After talks in Doha, the capital of Qatar, both sides agreed on October 19 to end hostilities. However, they failed to find a more permanent solution as ongoing peace talks were undermined by repeated outbreaks of violence.
(dzc/rr)
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