Residents of Herat reported for the first time on Tuesday that drones were seen patrolling the skies over the province around 9:40 p.m. on Tuesday, April 30.
This comes a day after an ISIS attack on the Imam Zaman mosque in Herat in western Afghanistan.
Sources told Amu that these drones, previously attributed to U.S. forces by the Taliban, have been spotted not only in Herat but in Kapisa province as well, where residents have observed them for more than a week.
“We have seen drones flying over Kapisa for the past week,” said Jamshid, a resident of Kapisa.
Nematullah, another local, added, “Drones have been seen in the province of Kapisa for two weeks now, and people are very concerned.”
“People are very anxious and worried since American drones started patrolling the skies of Kapisa,” said Jamil, a resident of Kapisa.
In recent weeks, drone sightings have been reported in several provinces, including Kandahar, Parwan, Kapisa, Baghlan, Panjshir, Laghman, Kabul, and most recently, Herat.
Military experts say these drones, which are operated remotely, are increasingly used in modern warfare for both bombing and reconnaissance missions. “One of their uses is for espionage, designed for reconnaissance, location awareness, and air support, while they are also used for operational strikes,” said military analyst Aminullah Ranjbar.
The increase in drone patrols is reportedly linked to heightened activities by terrorist groups in the country.
Taliban has repeatedly claimed that these drones are operated by American forces and have described their continued patrols as a violation of Afghan airspace. The United States has not yet responded to these allegations.
