Bibi Ayesha, a female warlord who fought against the Soviet occupation and the Taliban regime in Afghanistan, has surrendered to the insurgency group, reports said. Ayesha, also known as Commander Kaftar, switched over to the Taliban along with a number of her armed followers in the northern province of Baghlan.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid tweeted that their Preaching and Guidance Commission welcomed her.
“Female commander (Kaftar) mislead by enemy & forced to apparently stand against IEA Mujahidin in Sajano area of Nahrin district #Baghlan joined Mujahidin along with her armed followers earlier today. Preaching & Guidance Commission officials welcomed them,” Mujahid said on October 16.
Afghan officials have confirmed the Taliban’s statement. “Commander Kaftar, along with a number of her armed followers, has joined the Taliban,” Fazal Din Muradi, district governor of Nahrain, a rural district in the northern province of Baghlan, told Radio Free Afghanistan.
Ayesha had rebelled against the Soviet occupation in Afghanistan in the 1980s when she formed an army of 200 fighters. She also fought against the Taliban when the militant group swept Afghanistan in 1990s. According to Gandhara news portal, Ayesha refused to disarm her fighters after the demise of the Taliban regime in late 2001.
According to the New York Times, Ayesha’s son played down the latest episode, saying it was more a truce than a surrender.
“She hasn’t joined the Taliban. We don’t fight the Taliban anymore; we have weapons to protect ourselves from our enemies,” he was quoted by NYT as saying.
