Foreign special services tried to incite hostilities in Afghanistan after the Taliban seized power, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, the leader of the Party of Islam (Hezb-e Islami Gulbuddin) and a member of the coordination council overseeing the peaceful transfer of power, told Sputnik in an interview.
“There are no reports of an ongoing war within the few days after the Taliban came. There are some news about hostilities in Andarab [an area in Afghanistan’s northern Baghlan province], but here, foreign intelligence agencies are involved that wanted to incite these events. I believe [these actions] will face resistance from the people and will not last long,” Hekmatyar said.
Having established control over Kabul, the Taliban “did not persecute anyone, did not take revenge on anyone, and did not detain or kill anyone,” Hekmatyar emphasized.
Pakistani media outlet Dawn quoted Hekmatyar as saying – India should concentrate on its internal matters instead of issuing statements regarding the future of Afghanistan.
He also said that India should refrain from using Afghan soil against Pakistan to take revenge for Kashmiris’ struggle in Jammu and Kashmir, according to Radio Pakistan.
Earlier, Taliban spokesman Suhail Shaheen told Sky News broadcaster that they will not give the United States and the United Kingdom any extra time to continue evacuations from Afghanistan, August 31 is the red line for the US forces withdrawal.
“It’s a red line. [US] President [Joe] Biden announced that on 31 August they would withdraw all their military forces.
So if they extend it that means they are extending occupation while there is no need for that … If the US or UK were to seek additional time to continue evacuations – the answer is no. Or there would be consequences.
It will create mistrust between us. If they are intent on continuing the occupation it will provoke a reaction,” Shaheen said.
