Afghanistan’s defiant Vice President Amrullah Saleh on Tuesday made it clear that he would never leave his country, following the collapse of the government. He said he would never surrender.
It appears he has retreated to the country's last remaining holdout: the Panjshir Valley northeast of Kabul.
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On Sunday, before going underground, he tweeted that he hasn’t disappointed millions who listened to him. He wrote, “I will never, ever & under no circumstances bow to d Talib terrorists. I will never betray d soul & legacy of my hero Ahmad Shah Masoud, the commander, the legend & the guide. I won't disappoint millions who listened to me. I will never be under one ceiling with the Taliban. NEVER.”
A day later, pictures of former Vice President and the son of his former mentor and famed anti-Taliban fighter Ahmed Shah Massoud went viral on the internet from Panjshir. Reportedly, Saleh and Massoud’s son were appeared to put together the first pieces of a guerrilla movement to take on the victorious Taliban, as fighters regroup in Panjshir.Also Read: Explained: How Taliban’s return in Afghanistan will affect lives of millions of Afghan women
The valley of Panjshir is known for its natural defense as neither is it seized by the Taliban nor the Soviets conquered it, a decade before. One of the residents told media agency AFP, “We will not allow the Taliban to enter Panjshir and will resist with all our might and power, and fight them.”
“We will continue our fight”, said Vice President Saleh. He was orphaned at a young age and fought his first battle in 1990 alongside guerilla commander Massoud. Later, he went to serve in the government before the Taliban captured the Afghan capital in 1996.
After witnessing bloodshed and torture, Saleh last year wrote, “My view of the Taliban changed forever because of what happened in 1996.”
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After September 11, 2001 attacks, Saleh, who was a member of the anti-Taliban group, became the key asset for the CIA. Following this, in 2004 he lead the newly formed Afghanistan Intelligence Agency, the National Security Directorate (NDS). In 2010, he was sacked as Afghan spy chief following a humiliating attack on a Kabul peace conference.
His latest close call came last September when a massive bomb was targeted at his convoy and at least 10 people were killed in Kabul. After the attack, Saleh appeared in front of the world with his left hand bandaged and promised to fight back.