RASC News Agency reports: In response to public protests against the Taliban in Badakhshan province, the National Resistance Council for the Salvation of Afghanistan issued a statement addressing the Taliban, asserting that “humiliation and murder of the people” will not lead to achieving their “oppressive goals.” According to a statement released by the council on Sunday night, May 5, the Taliban should not further test the patience of the people with “aggression, oppression, and injustice.”
The statement continued: “The Taliban must understand the message of the people’s protests and respect the general will. However, their persistence in suppression, murder, humiliation, and usurpation of the public will lead to their own downfall.” The National Resistance Council for the Salvation of Afghanistan added: “The behavior of the Taliban everywhere, especially in recent events in Badakhshan, indicates that this ruthless suppression is not about poppy cultivation, but rather politically motivated; because in many parts of the country, they themselves promote opium cultivation.”
Over the past three days, public protests against the Taliban have taken place in the Darym and Argo districts of Badakhshan. Protesters cited “oppression and violations of their privacy” by the Pashtun-dominated Taliban as reasons for their resistance against the group. In response to the protesters’ demands, the Taliban opened fire on the crowd, resulting in at least two deaths and over 15 injuries.
