Afghan National Resistance Front Spokesperson Sibghatullah Ahmadi announced this morning that fighters in Arezoo valley of Panjshir shot down a Taliban helicopter. Four crewman apparently survived and were captured by the Resistance. The above picture shows what appears to be an Mi-17, of which the Taliban captured about 100 from various Afghanistan military bases since last September. The only visible difference between the Mi-8 and Mi-17, which are both flown by Taliban pilots is the tail rotor is on the left side.
He also said: “the captives are in good condition and they are and will be treated according to Islamic instructions and humanitarian law. We will have more details soon.”
This is the first report of a Taliban aircraft being shot down since the dramatic return to power in September of 2021. The Afghan National Resistance Front has been waging a low level insurgency in the Panjshir valley which has caused considerable casualties to the Taliban who are also battling an ISIS insurgency that has carried out more than a dozen bombings under their rule.
