Republican insurgency in Afghanistan
| Republican insurgency in Afghanistan | |||||||||
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| Part of the Afghan conflict | |||||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||||
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Supported by: Independent militias Taliban dissidents | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
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| Units involved | |||||||||
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Army of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan
Various pro-Taliban militias Pakistan Armed Forces (until 2024; unconfirmed, rejected by Pakistan)
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National Resistance Front of Afghanistan
Various non-NRF militias
Pakistan Armed Forces (since 2024; unconfirmed)
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| Strength | |||||||||
| 60,000–260,000 Taliban armed forces overall |
2,000–10,000 (Panjshir resistance; estimates)
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| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
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NRF claim: 950+ killed, 1,500+ captured (2021) |
Heavy casualties IEA claims: Large number of POWs, vehicles and weapons also captured | ||||||||
The republican insurgency in Afghanistan is an ongoing low-level guerrilla war between the National Resistance Front and allied groups which fight under the banner of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan on one side, and the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (the state controlled by the Taliban) on the other side. On 17 August 2021, former first vice president of Afghanistan Amrullah Saleh declared himself the "caretaker" president of Afghanistan and announced the resistance. On 26 August, a brief ceasefire was declared. On 1 September, talks broke down and fighting resumed as the Taliban attacked resistance positions.
As of 3 September 2021, in addition to the opposition in the Panjshir, there were also districts in the centre of Afghanistan that still resisted the Taliban, supported by ethnic and religious minorities. On 6 September, the Taliban took control of most of the Panjshir province, with resistance fighters retreating to the mountains to continue fighting within the province. Clashes in the valley mostly ceased mid-September, while resistance leaders Amrullah Saleh and Ahmad Massoud fled to neighboring Tajikistan. Despite these developments, NRF holdouts continued to fight, still waging a guerrilla campaign in several provinces including Baghlan, Balkh, Badakhshan, and Faryab by early 2022. In addition, an independent anti-Taliban militia still held territory in Samangan Province as of December 2021.
As of December 2022, the NRF controlled no territory but continued to carry out hit and run guerrilla attacks. As of December 2023, NRF leader Ahmad Massoud claimed that the NRF was conducting attacks against the Taliban in 20 out of Afghanistan's 34 provinces.