A group of Afghan leaders is trying to rally a force to resist the Taliban from the same strategic valley that two decades ago held out against the militants. In particular, local Panjshir provincial politician and son of former Defense Minister Ahmad Massoud called on the nation to resist and literally declared the war on the Taliban.
Ammad Massoud joined Mr. Saleh, former Afghanistan’s first vice president, who on Sunday said he was the “caretaker president” under Afghanistan’s U.S.-brokered 2004 Constitution.
“We have lost territory but not legitimacy,” he said in an interview conducted over a text message exchange. “I, as caretaker president, upholder of the Constitution, don’t see the Taliban emirate either as legitimate or national.”
Ammad Massoud is the son of the assassinated resistance leader, and Gen. Yasin Zia, former Afghan army chief of staff and deputy defense minister.
“My father never forgot this as he fought against the Taliban regime. Up until the moment he was assassinated on Sept. 9, 2001, at the behest of the Taliban and al-Qaeda, he was fighting for the fate of Afghanistan but also for the West. Now this common struggle is more essential than ever in these dark, tense hours for my homeland,” he told Washington Post.
He stated that he is “ready to follow in my father’s footsteps, with mujahideen fighters who are prepared to once again take on the Taliban.” Almost declaring the war.
“We have stores of ammunition and arms that we have patiently collected since my father’s time, because we knew this day might come. We also have the weapons carried by the Afghans who, over the past 72 hours, have responded to my appeal to join the resistance in Panjshir. We have soldiers from the Afghan regular army who were disgusted by the surrender of their commanders and are now making their way to the hills of Panjshir with their equipment. Former members of the Afghan Special Forces have also joined our struggle,” Ammad Massoud continued.
However, Ammad Massoud faces that Afghan resistance forces, military capability, and logistics are insufficient. Therefore, he called on all Afghan friends in the West to find a way and supply them without delay.
“The United States and its allies have left the battlefield, but America can still be a “great arsenal of democracy”… To that end, I entreat Afghanistan’s friends in the West to intercede for us in Washington and in New York, with Congress, and with the Biden administration. Intercede for us in London, where I completed my studies, and in Paris, where my father’s memory was honored this spring by the naming of a pathway for him in the Champs-Élysées gardens. Know that millions of Afghans share your values,” Ammad Massoud stated, continuing, “We have fought for so long to have an open society, one where girls could become doctors, our press could report freely, our young people could dance and listen to music or attend soccer matches in the stadiums that were once used by the Taliban for public executions — and may soon be again.”
He concluded that Taliban is not a problem for the Afghan people alone as they know from experience what awaits them. However, they need more weapons, more ammunition, and more supplies.
“America and its democratic allies do not just have the fight against terrorism in common with Afghans. We now have a long history made up of shared ideals and struggles. There is still much that you can do to aid the cause of freedom. You are our only remaining hope,” Ammad Massoud concluded.