Taliban have detained at least eight residents in the central province of Panjshir following an explosion claimed by an anti-Taliban armed group, according to local residents and sources.
Residents said the arrests took place after an explosion on Monday evening in the village of Manjenesto in Abdullah Khil district. Among those detained are three teachers, according to local sources.
Three sources told Amu that Taliban forces began making arrests on Tuesday morning and that the district remains under heavy security control. Residents said interrogations are continuing and that movement in the area is being closely monitored.
The identities of all those detained could not be independently verified, though residents identified several of them as Shirzaman, Nur Zaman, Jalal, Abdullah Jan, Rashid and Sohrab.
Residents also said Taliban have tightened security measures across the district and warned that additional arrests may follow.
The detentions came after an explosion in Manjenesto village on Monday evening. Shortly afterward, the Green Unit, the armed wing of the Green Trend movement led by former Vice President Amrullah Saleh, claimed responsibility for the attack.
In a statement, the group said it had carried out a “targeted operation” against a Datsun pickup truck carrying Taliban fighters in Abdullah Khil district. The Green Unit claimed the vehicle was transporting 10 Taliban members to a military outpost and was completely destroyed in the blast.
The Green Unit said the attack was carried out in retaliation for the killing of two of its members, Hakimullah Khan and Ahmad Ali, both residents of the same village. According to the group, the two men were arrested by Taliban forces and later executed last year.
Taliban have not publicly commented on either the explosion or the subsequent arrests.
Panjshir was the last province to fall to the Taliban after their return to power in August 2021. Although the Taliban quickly established control over the province, Panjshir has remained a center of sporadic resistance activity and occasional anti-Taliban attacks.
Armed opposition groups, including factions linked to former government officials, have periodically claimed attacks on Taliban forces in Panjshir and neighboring provinces. Taliban, however, maintain that security has been restored nationwide and have repeatedly dismissed reports of an organized armed insurgency.
Earlier this year, Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi said there was not “a single active opposition movement” operating anywhere in Afghanistan.
Residents say Taliban have previously detained civilians in Abdullah Khil district following incidents linked to opposition activity. In recent months, local residents reported arrests after anti-Taliban slogans appeared in parts of the district.
