At least one person was killed and three others wounded in a clash over a gold mine in Afghanistan’s northeastern Badakhshan province, local sources said, in the latest sign of growing tensions surrounding mining activities in the resource-rich region.
Sources told Amu TV that the shooting occurred on Saturday in the Qatqati area of Shaki district during a dispute involving armed men allegedly linked to the brother of a former Taliban district governor in Nusay district.
According to the sources, the confrontation centered on control and access to a local gold mine where residents and laborers had recently discovered gold deposits inside one of the tunnels.
Local residents said armed individuals associated with Taliban-linked figures demanded that miners pay one million Afghanis each in order to continue working at the site.
The workers were allegedly warned that mining operations would be halted if the payments were not made.
Residents said tensions escalated after Taliban-linked forces attempted to prevent locals from continuing mining activities or sought to extract payments from them.
The dispute later turned violent, resulting in a firefight in which one civilian was killed and three others wounded, the sources said.
The identities of the victims were not immediately released.
Taliban had not publicly commented on the incident by Sunday morning.
Badakhshan, a mountainous province bordering Tajikistan and China, is believed to contain significant deposits of gold, gemstones and other minerals. Control over mining sites has long been a source of tension among local strongmen, armed groups and Taliban.
Since returning to power in 2021, Taliban have increasingly sought to expand control over Afghanistan’s mining sector, which has been described as a major potential source of revenue for the country’s struggling economy.
But local residents and analysts have repeatedly raised concerns about illegal extraction, corruption, armed interference and lack of transparency surrounding mining operations in several provinces, including Badakhshan.
The province has also witnessed recurring unrest in recent years, including protests and clashes linked to Taliban poppy-eradication campaigns and local grievances over governance and economic conditions.
