SunstarTV Bureau: Conquering the Panjshir Valley has been difficult for the Taliban. Even now the Panjshir Valley seems to be standing firmly against the Taliban. Afghan Ambassador to Tajikistan Zahir Aghabar has said that the Panjshir Valley province will serve as a stronghold for resistance against the Taliban by Amrullah Saleh, the first Vice President of the Afghan government.
Pertaining to mention here that, Saleh has described himself as the caretaker president of Afghanistan. At a time when Panjshir Valley seems to be challenging to Taliban clans, it’s time to know about the valley.
- ‘Panjshir Ghati’ means valley of five lions. Its name is associated with a legend. In 10th century, five brothers are believed to have managed to control the flood waters. He built a dam for Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni, it claimed. Since then it is called Panjshir Valley.
- The Panjshir Valley is located north of Kabul in the Hindu Kush. The region was a stronghold of resistance against the Soviet Union in the 1980s and then the Taliban in the 1990s.
- More than 1.5 lakh people live in this valley. Most of the people of Tajik origin live in this valley.
- Amrullah Saleh was born in Panjshir province and trained there.
- Since the Panjshir valley always remained the center of resistance, no one could ever conquer this region. Neither the Soviet Union, nor the US, nor the Taliban could ever control the region.
- The Taliban have not yet attacked Panjshir. Experts believe that the Panjshir valley is at such a place that makes it a natural fort and it is said to be a major reason for not being attacked.
- Ahmed Masood, Amrullah Saleh, Mohammad Khan Panjshir are among the biggest leaders of the resistance.
- The Panjshir Valley region is also known as the Northern Alliance. The Northern Alliance was a coalition of insurgent groups opposing the Taliban rule in Kabul from 1996 to 2001. This alliance included Ahmed Shah Masood, Amrullah Saleh as well as Karim Khalili, Abdul Rashid Dostum, Abdullah Abdullah, Mohammad Mohkik, Abdul Qadir, Asif Mohseni etc.
- Where Amrulla Saleh is at present is not clear but according to local media reports he is in Panjshir Valley. He wrote on Twitter on August 19, ‘Countries should respect the rule of law, not violence. Afghanistan is so big that Pakistan cannot swallow. This is huge for the Taliban regime. Don’t let your history become a chapter on humiliation and don’t bow down to terrorist groups.
- Ahmed Masood, son of Ahmed Shah Masood, has sought help from western countries. He wrote in the Washington Post, “I am writing from Panjshir Valley. I am ready to follow in the footsteps of my father. Mujahideen fighters are ready to fight the Taliban once again. We have stockpiles of ammunition and weapons which I have been hoarding since my father’s time because we knew this day might come.”
He further wrote, “The Taliban is not just the problem of the Afghan people. With Taliban control, Afghanistan will become a ground for radical Islamic terrorism and a conspiracy against democracy will be hatched here once again.”
