As Taliban fighters are asked to move to Panjshir amid resistance fom the group led by former Vice President Amrullah Saleh, Taliban has reportedly offered an olive branch to hold talks with the Northern Alliance, which has duly agreed, reports said.
The two sides have agreed to cease attacks against each other, IANS reported quoting Geo News. The meetings between the two delegations of the Taliban and Northern Alliance were taking place over the last two days at Charikar in Afghanistan's Parwan province, it said. A peace agreement will be announced during a press conference, the report said.
What could have led Panjshir resistance to sit at the negotiations table is probably the shortage of food supplies and precarious situation that has hit the Alliance, as tweets by Saleh reveal. The Taliban had said they are in control of at least three areas around Panjshir, which has made the leaders of Panjshir to relent.
In a tweet, Amrullah Saleh said that a humanitarian crisis is developing because food and fuel supplies have been cut off by the Taliban. "Talibs aren't allowing food & fuel to get into Andarab valley. The humanitarian situation is dire. Thousands of women & children have fled to mountains. Since the last two days Talibs abduct children & elderly and use them as shields to move around or do house search," he tweeted.
Talibs aren't allowing food & fuel to get into Andarab valley. The humanitarian situation is dire. Thousands of women & children have fled to mountains. Since the last two days Talibs abduct children & elderly and use them as shields to move around or do house search.
— Amrullah Saleh (@AmrullahSaleh2) August 23, 2021
While the NRF had vowed to resist any assault, it is unclear if they have the food, supplies, and ammunition to withstand a prolonged siege. Otherwise, the NRF had said it is open to talks with the Taliban on an inclusive government, and elders from the Panjshir Valley have reportedly spoken with Taliban officials.
Taliban Stand
For Taliban, the Panjshir Valley could remain the most significant pocket of resistance against them following their takeover of Afghanistan.
Comprising anti-Taliban militia fighters and former Afghan security forces, they vowed to resist as the Taliban send fighters to surround the area. Both sides have said they want to resolve the standoff through talks in the past.
Panjshir is a narrow valley deep in the Hindu Kush mountains, with its southern tip around 80 km north of the capital Kabul. The valley has limited entry points and its geography offers a natural military advantage, defending units can use high positions to effectively target attacking forces.
It also has immense symbolic value in Afghanistan as the area that has resisted occupation by invaders for more than a century. Resistance from the valley, mainly inhabited by ethnic Tajik people, heavily shaped the political and security landscape of Afghanistan during the 1980s and 1990s.
The Taliban have sent hundreds of fighters into the areas surrounding Panjshir, in an apparent attempt to lay siege and force a surrender. Despite the escalation, Taliban spokesmen have said they would prefer to resolve the situation peacefully.
