ISLAMABAD: President Emomali Rahmon of Tajikistan on Sunday chaired anemergency high-level security meeting in Dushanbe to review escalatingattacks launched from Afghan soil that have claimed five lives, includingChinese nationals, over the past week. The presidential palace confirmedthat cross-border shelling and a drone strike targeted Tajik territory,marking the deadliest spillover since the Taliban takeover in 2021.
During the closed-door session attended by defence, interior, andintelligence chiefs, Rahmon received a detailed briefing on thedeteriorating situation along the 1,357-kilometre Tajik-Afghan frontier.Official statements described the incidents as deliberate provocations byarmed groups operating from northern Afghanistan with apparent impunityunder Taliban rule. Three Chinese engineers and miners working on a Beltand Road project in Shamsiddin Shohin district were killed in the droneattack, while two Tajik border guards died in separate artillery exchanges.
The Tajik leader strongly condemned the assaults and ordered immediatereinforcement of border outposts, enhanced aerial surveillance, andcoordinated patrols with Russian forces stationed in the country. Sourcesclose to the meeting told international media that Dushanbe is activelyconsidering a range of retaliatory and preventive measures againstTaliban-controlled areas if Kabul fails to rein in the perpetrators.
Tajikistan refuses to recognise the Taliban government and has repeatedlyaccused it of sheltering anti-Dushanbe militants, including the JamaatAnsarullah group. The latest violence has also alarmed Beijing, promptingChina’s embassy to issue an urgent evacuation notice for its citizens insouthern Tajikistan. Analysts warn that continued targeting of Chineseinterests could trigger a joint Sino-Tajik security response along theWakhan Corridor.
Rahmon instructed security agencies to prepare contingency plans whilemaintaining diplomatic channels with Kabul for de-escalation, but made itclear that Tajikistan will not tolerate further violations of itssovereignty. The meeting concluded with a directive to strengthencooperation with CSTO allies and neighbouring Uzbekistan, which alsoreported minor border incidents last month.
Read Top Stories
Regional observers see the crisis as a dangerous escalation that riskspulling multiple powers into the fragile Afghan theatre at a time when theTaliban faces mounting international isolation over its failure to curbterrorism.
Source:https://asiaplus.tj/en/news/tajikistan/security/20251201/president-rahmon-holds-emergency-meeting-after-deadly-border-attacks-from-afghanistan
Attacks Kill Five