Tajikistan forces kill four militants at Afghanistan border

Tajikistan’s security forces killed four militants near the Afghanistan border after they crossed illegally and resisted arrest, officials said, amid heightened tensions and recent border violence.

Tajik media reported that four members of what authorities described as a “terrorist group” were killed after crossing from Afghanistan into Tajikistan’s Badakhshan region, officials said on Sunday.

According to the state news agency Khovar, the men entered Tajikistan territory from the Darbandak village in Afghanistan’s Khwahan district, where their location was quickly identified by Tajik border forces.

Border guards attempted to detain the group, but the suspects ignored orders to surrender and opened armed resistance, prompting a security operation in which all four were killed, the report said.

Tajik border authorities said weapons and military equipment were recovered from the site of the clash, though details about the type of arms seized were not immediately disclosed.

Officials stressed that border security remains under full control and warned that any armed infiltration or illegal crossing would be met with force and legal action.

Tajikistan shares a long and porous border with Afghanistan, particularly along the mountainous Badakhshan region, which has been a persistent security concern for Central Asian states.

Since the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in 2021, Tajikistan has repeatedly voiced alarm over militant movements near its frontier, increasing patrols and coordination with regional security partners.

The latest incident follows earlier reports that two Tajik border guards were killed in gunfire originating from Afghanistan territory, heightening tensions and reinforcing Tajikistan’s hardened stance on border security.

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