Five years after Taliban takeover, Afghanistan's armed opposition faces fragmented future

Saturday marks five years since the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan, and armed opposition to the movement is no longer confined to a single front or leadership. Since the fall of the previous government in August 2021, several groups operating under different names and banners have emerged, claiming responsibility for attacks on government forces in a number of provinces. Their presence online has also increased noticeably in recent months. [...] The Taliban, for its part, said it repelled the attack and killed a number of the assailants, while the front said it had beaten back counterattacks. [...] Afghan government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid played down the activities of armed groups opposed to the Taliban, saying their presence was concentrated largely online rather than on the ground. [...] Writer and political analyst Khalid Ahmadi told Al Jazeera that “the main problem is that the armed opposition exaggerates its ability to carry out operations, but has so far failed to present a unified vision for a post-Taliban period.”