ISLAMABAD: The Afghanistan Freedom Front (AFF), one of the most activearmed resistance groups operating against Taliban rule, has claimedresponsibility for a daring attack on the Taliban’s Ministry for thePromotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice headquarters in Maimana, capitalof northern Faryab province, on Sunday evening.
In a detailed statement circulated on social media, the AFF said itsfighters launched a pre-planned operation that targeted a gathering ofTaliban morality police personnel as they were exiting the heavily guardedbuilding. The group asserted that two Taliban members were killed in theassault and claimed that the fate of the provincial head of the Vice andVirtue office remained unknown, suggesting he may have been seriouslywounded or killed.
The resistance front accused the ministry’s employees of routinelyassembling at the Maimana centre each morning before deploying across thecity in small groups of three to five armed men to harass residents, withparticular emphasis on enforcing strict dress code and behaviouralrestrictions on women. The AFF described the attack as retaliation for whatit called systematic oppression and public humiliation of civilians.
A spokesperson for the Taliban’s Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue andPrevention of Vice swiftly rejected the AFF claims. In a post on X, theofficial stated that an armed militant had attempted to target ministryemployees outside the Maimana office but was neutralised before he couldreach his intended victims. The spokesperson provided no information aboutcasualties on the Taliban side, the identity of the attacker, or the methodused to foil the assault.
Sunday’s incident marks the latest in a series of operations claimed by theAFF against the Taliban’s morality police apparatus. The group says it haspreviously carried out similar targeted attacks on Vice and Virtuepersonnel in Kabul, Takhar, Kapisa, Badakhshan, and several other provincesover the past year, framing its campaign as defence of personal freedomsand women’s rights under Taliban rule.
Local residents in Maimana reported hearing gunfire near the ministrycompound around dusk on Sunday, though independent verification remainsdifficult due to tight Taliban control over information in the area.
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The attack underscores the continuing low-intensity insurgency againstTaliban authorities in northern Afghanistan, where ethnic minoritycommunities have shown growing resentment toward the predominantly PashtunTaliban administration.
Source: www.afintl.com/202511301845″>https://www.afintl.com/202511301845
ogimageimage-nameFaryab, Claims Two Killed