The Taliban jihadist organization celebrated the one-year anniversary of its takeover of Afghanistan on Monday by declaring a national holiday, applauding itself for its alleged “achievements,” and demanding America fund its success.
Taliban terrorists seized Kabul, the national capital, on August 15, 2021, after then-President Ashraf Ghani fled the country. Taliban leaders insist to this day that they did not take power willingly but only filled a power vacuum left by Ghani, a claim undermined by the campaign of national conquest that the group engaged in for months prior to arriving in Kabul – and for 20 years following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
The Taliban arrived in Kabul after decades of fighting American-backed troops elsewhere in the country following leftist President Joe Biden’s decision to break an agreement brokered between the group and the administration of former President Donald Trump that would have ended U.S. involvement in the country in May of 2021. Biden announced in April of that year that America would continue to invest in the Afghan War through the 20th anniversary of the September 11 attacks, a move Taliban leaders described as a violation of the Trump-era agreement that nullified the deal and allowed them to continue attempts to overthrow Ghani. Taliban leaders launched 22,000 attacks between April, when Biden announced he would violate the agreement, and July 2021.
The Afghan military ceased to exist following the arrival of the Taliban in Kabul; the Sunni terrorists took power in the capital city without a battle.
Top Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid shared a statement by the group’s prime minister and one of its founders, Mohammad Hassan Akhund, on Monday celebrating “Kabul Conquest Day.”
“This day marked the beginning of the victory of truth over falsehood and the liberation of the country from the invaders and their slaves,” Akhund’s statement declared. “The whole nation should appreciate and be thankful for this great victory that freed our country from occupation, war, and disaster.”
Akhund reportedly encouraged Taliban terrorists to “have more patience, persistence, and courage and try harder to maintain the security of the country” – an apparent admission that the ongoing threat of the Islamic State and other rival terrorist groups, as well as violence linked to drug trafficking, remain a concern.
Akhund also demanded that the international community accept the Taliban as a legitimate government.
“We are not a threat to any country,” the statement read. “Other countries should have positive political and commercial interactions with Afghanistan and help the Islamic Emirate [the Taliban] for the stability of Afghanistan and the region.”
The Taliban have taken to demanding financial aid, particularly from America, increasingly brazenly throughout the past year. The United States, in addition to global financial institutions like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank, have refused to unfreeze Afghan government funds to allow the Taliban to use them, citing the fact that the Taliban is not the country’s legitimate government. Afghanistan is facing arguably the most severe poverty in the world since the collapse of its government, leaving the vast majority of civilians enduring food shortages and dependent on charity to survive. Rather than building up the country’s economy or aiding civilians, the Taliban has used its power to boost its number of jihadis while condemning Washington for not funding its success.
Taliban fighters hold weapons as they ride on humvee to celebrate their victory day near the US embassy in Kabul on August 15, 2022. – Taliban fighters chanted victory slogans next to the US embassy in Kabul on August 15 as they marked the first anniversary of their return to power in Afghanistan following a turbulent year that saw women’s rights crushed and a humanitarian crisis worsen. (Photo by Wakil KOHSAR / AFP) (Photo by WAKIL KOHSAR/AFP via Getty Images)
Taliban Foreign Ministry spokesman Abdul Qahar Balkhi, speaking to Voice of America in an interview published Sunday, again repeated demands that Washington invest American taxpayers’ dollars into the success of the group, disregarding the Taliban’s alliance with al-Qaeda, the group responsible for the September 11 attacks.
“It is now for foreign countries, specifically the United States, to do their part in alleviating the pain of Afghans by lifting all unilateral economic sanctions to let the banking and economic sector function optimally,” Balkhi demanded. Voice of America noted that Balkhi “renewed the demand for Washington to unblock Afghan central bank’s foreign cash reserves, largely held in the U.S.”
Balkhi refused to acknowledge the global criticism of the Taliban for its rampant human rights abuses, particularly the extreme repression of women and the outlawing of women and girls’ right to education.
Afghan women hold placards as they march and shout slogans “Bread, work, freedom” during a womens’ rights protest in Kabul on August 13, 2022. – Taliban fighters beat women protesters and fired into the air on Saturday as they violently dispersed a rare rally in the Afghan capital, days ahead of the first anniversary of the hardline Islamists’ return to power. (Photo by Wakil KOHSAR / AFP) (Photo by WAKIL KOHSAR/AFP via Getty Images)
“Just as we do not interfere in the internal affairs of others, we also demand other states not interfere in the internal affairs of Afghanistan and to show respect for a people that are trying to heal organically after decades of foreign imposed prescriptions,” Balkhi told Voice of America.
On Twitter, where the Taliban maintains an active presence, Balkhi used the occasion of the anniversary of his terrorist organization’s conquest to boast about the alleged successes of the group.
Balkhi made several sensational claims as to the Taliban’s “achievements in spite of sanctions” that included multiple provable falsehoods, including the claim that the Taliban established “free media” and had implemented “amnesty and inclusiveness.” “Inclusive” was a popular buzzword during the early days of Taliban rule that the jihadists have largely abandoned since receiving support from rogue states like China, Russia, and Iran.
Afghanistan is still home to several news agencies outside of the Taliban’s Bakhtar news outlet, but the claim that journalists are “free” in the country is difficult to make. The Taliban, for example, banned the broadcast of women’s faces in news reports, allowing women to serve as anchors or reporters only if wearing a burqa. Male journalists also face incessant harassment; major news broadcasters such as Tolo News endured regular “inspections” by Taliban terrorists in the early days of Taliban rule.
Balkhi also dubiously claimed the Taliban had prepared “mega projects” in infrastructure, “increased access to education & healthcare,” and “end[ed] insecurity” in general, omitting that the Taliban itself was the main source of instability in the country prior to seizing power.