Taliban Reiterates Claims of U.S. Drone Flights over Afghanistan.
Zabiullah Mujahid, Taliban spokesperson, told the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) that U.S. drones continue to operate in Afghanistan’s airspace. He stated that these drones enter Afghanistan “through the airspace of some neighboring countries,” though he did not name any specific country. Mujahid emphasized that the Taliban have repeatedly demanded a complete halt to U.S. drone flights over Afghan territory.
He added that these drone operations have continued since the Taliban returned to power, and that the issue has been raised in various meetings, with formal protests lodged by the Taliban. Taliban officials have previously claimed that U.S. drones enter Afghan airspace via Pakistan, though Islamabad has consistently denied these allegations.
Meanwhile, United Nations Security Council reports confirm that several terrorist groups, including al-Qaeda, Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, and Jamaat Ansarullah Tajikistan, operate in Afghanistan with Taliban support. In July 2022, U.S. drones targeted Ayman al-Zawahiri, former al-Qaeda leader, in Kabul’s Wazir Akbar Khan area. The Taliban denied the attack, but then-U.S. President Joe Biden confirmed al-Zawahiri was killed in a “pre-planned operation.”
