RASC News Agency: Hibatullah Akhundzada, the Taliban leader, recently met with local officials in the Faryab province, where he announced his decree that August 15, the day Kabul fell to the Taliban, should be named “Youm al-Fath” (Day of Victory). This declaration comes despite the fact that this day is regarded as one of the darkest in Afghanistan’s history, a day that the Afghanistani people remember with deep sorrow and loss. Just recently, Afghanistani women’s protest movements declared August 15 as the “Black Day” in the country’s history.
On this day, thousands of Afghanistani citizens fled the country in fear of the Taliban. According to many young people, this day was a “Day of Death” for many. Ahmadullah, who escaped to Iran on that day, told RASC, “August 15 is a day of shame and darkness in Afghanistan’s history, not a day of victory.” Shirullah, a young man who sought refuge in Pakistan out of fear of the Taliban, echoed these sentiments, saying, “August 15 was not a day of victory; it was a day of escape for the youth.” The citizens of Afghanistan refer to this day as the “Black Day,” the “Day of Escape,” and the “Day of Misery.” The Taliban’s Department of Information and Culture in Faryab issued a statement confirming Hibatullah Akhundzada’s visit to the province on Friday, September 9, where he labeled the day as one of victory.
According to this statement, the Taliban leader told local officials that their group did not win through “military tools” but rather through “shedding much blood” and with “the help of the Lord of the Worlds.” He therefore ordered that August 15 be officially named “Yum al-Fath.” However, the reality is that the Taliban killed and tortured thousands of Afghanistanis and entered Kabul as part of a deal with the United States. Akhundzada instructed provincial officials to make serious efforts to “implement God’s boundaries, ensure the safety of people’s lives and property, provide proper education for students in Madrassas, schools, and universities, and enforce the law of commanding the good.”
The Taliban leader often speaks of madrassas, using them as tools to spread the Taliban’s ideology, while paying little attention to schools. In recent weeks, Hibatullah Akhundzada has traveled to the provinces of Badghis, Balkh, Faryab, and Jowzjan, meeting with local Taliban officials in these areas. This marks Akhundzada’s first visit to northern Afghanistan since the Taliban regained control of the country. While local Taliban officials have confirmed his visit to Faryab, no photos or videos of the trip have been released thus far.
Akhundzada, who is based in Kandahar, rarely travels to other provinces, and images or footage of his trips are never publicly shared.
