Taliban faces growing dissent in Afghanistan

The Taliban asked imams to call for unity during Friday prayers after facing a second day of scattered protests on Thursday. At least one person died after the militants targeted protesters who replaced the Taliban flag with the Afghan flag in the eastern city of Jalalabad, Afghanistan, on Wednesday. They also broke off similar demonstrations in Kabul, Kunar, and Nangarhar province on Thursday, when the country marked its independence. Eastern Khost province faced a 24-hour curfew after the Taliban violently ended another protest.

How has the Taliban positioned its leadership? The group has pledged to restore normalcy, respect women’s rights, and forgive those who fought against them. But many remain fearful. The RHIPTO Norwegian Center for Global Analyses said in a report that the Taliban has started to round up a blacklist of “collaborators” who either supported U.S. troops or worked with the previous government. Afghans have also reported the fighters are going door-to-door seeking people and threatening them into joining their ranks.

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