Unprecedented Taliban Attack on the National Army; An Insult to Thousands of Fallen Soldiers.
Noor-ul-Haq Anwar, the Taliban’s Head of Administrative Affairs, has made controversial and insulting remarks, describing the National Army of the former Republic as an institution composed of “illiterate individuals, devoid of religious feeling, unpatriotic, and possessing dead consciences”; statements widely viewed as provocative and unprecedented.
He made these remarks on 7 February 2026, during a graduation ceremony for Taliban fighters, where he openly distorted facts and claimed that under the former system, individuals who were “uneducated and lacking national spirit” were deliberately recruited into the National Army.
He went further by accusing the former Republic of “disregarding the value of defending the country” and even of carrying out bombardments.
These statements come despite official documents from the former Ministry of National Defense showing that religious education, promotion of patriotism, and national cohesion were mandatory components of the National Army’s training programs, and that religious scholars were present in all army corps, brigades, and battalions.
Moreover, the subject of “Islamic Culture” was formally taught at the National Defense University and other military academies, a reality that casts serious doubt on the Taliban’s claims.
