Taliban mayor in Badakhshan killed by blast as anniversary approaches

In the Afghan city of Faizabad, an explosion struck the vehicle of Habib Ur Rahman Mansoor, the mayor of Badakhshan province, killing him, according to the Interior Ministry. This incident is the second fatal attack on a senior Taliban official in the area within the past fortnight, the first being the shooting of Zabihullah Amiri, Badakhshan's director of information and culture. Officials declined to elaborate on the circumstances of the blast.

The attacks occur as the Taliban ready themselves to mark the fifth anniversary of their August 2021 return to power after the withdrawal of U.S. and NATO forces. While such targeted killings are uncommon, they have happened before, notably the December 2024 suicide bombing that killed refugee minister Khalil Haqqani in Kabul and earlier bombings that claimed the lives of deputy governor Nisar Ahmad Ahmadi and the governor of Balkh province.