RASC News Agency: Local sources in Badakhshan have reported a clash between Taliban fighters and residents in the village of Lashkargah, located in Raghistan district, resulting in the injury of five civilians. Residents disclosed to the media on Wednesday, May 15th, that the confrontation ensued when Taliban forces, under the leadership of Hayatullah Mohsen, the district governor of Raghistan, initiated gunfire towards the locals, prompting a retaliatory response.
According to local sources, Governor Mohsen visited Lashkargah village in response to a complaint and proceeded to assault residents engaged in mining activities, confiscating their equipment. Reports suggest that the situation escalated when relatives of the assaulted individuals congregated at the site and confronted Mohsen’s forces.
Despite being unarmed civilians, the villagers were targeted by Taliban gunfire, resulting in the injury of five residents. The local community reported that following the injuries sustained by residents, Governor Mohsen and his forces fled the scene. However, the district’s police chief and criminal director were assaulted by the villagers.
Local sources informed the media that residents of Lashkargah staged a protest against the Taliban, marching towards the district center of Raghistan. As of now, Taliban officials in Badakhshan have refrained from commenting on the incident. In recent weeks, protests against the Taliban have erupted in the districts of Daraim and Argo in Badakhshan.
These demonstrations were triggered by Taliban incursions into homes, purportedly for eradicating poppy fields, which led to harassment and abuse of residents, prompting widespread public outcry and protests. Since the escalation of tensions in Badakhshan, the Taliban have been responsible for the deaths of four individuals and the injury of nearly twenty others.
