Taliban celebrated the war-torn country’s independence day by declaring victory over a 20-year-old US-led invasion as they took control of the country. The new national holiday also honours the 1919 treaty that ended British rule in Afghanistan. The Taliban were quoted by the Associated Press on Thursday as saying, “Fortunately, today we are celebrating our independence from Britain,” adding that they “forced another arrogant power of the world, the United States, to fail and retreat from our holy territory of Afghanistan.”
Afghan nationals, who have been desperate to leave their homeland, defied the Taliban for the second day in a row on Thursday, waving their national flag at rallies across the country. The demonstrations are seen as a powerful show of defiance against the Taliban’s rule.
“My demand from the international community, the (UN) Security Council, is that they turn their attention to Afghanistan and not allow the achievements of 20 years to be wasted,” a protester told news agency AFP.
The Taliban, who claim to have become more moderate and progressive in recent years, reacted violently to the protests. They killed three protesters in Kunar province’s Asadabad city on Thursday for carrying the Afghan national flag. A video posted on the internet from another protest in Nangarhar province showed a demonstrator bleeding from a gunshot wound as onlookers attempted to carry him away. According to the Associated Press, a 24-hour curfew was imposed in Khost province after the Taliban violently dispersed another protest.
Meanwhile, according to a confidential United Nations document seen by AFP, the Taliban are intensifying their search for people who worked with the US and Nato, despite the group’s promise of no vengeance against its foes. The Taliban have compiled a priority list of individuals and family members to be detained, and have been making door-to-door visits to those on the list. The Taliban are also screening passengers at Kabul airport and have set up checkpoints in major cities, according to the UN document.
