National unity, resilience, and justice in the face of terrorism and extremism

Video address on the martyrdom of Afghan citizens taken hostage in Zabul

Keypoints: 

• Condolences and National Mourning: Sharing grief with families and the nation.
• Unity: Emphasizing national solidarity across ethnic and regional lines.
• Justice and Accountability: Pledging to pursue and punish perpetrators.
• Resilience Against Terrorism: Standing firm against extremist and terrorist threats.
• Emotional Discipline: Avoiding reactionary acts that could fuel division.
• Support for Security Forces: Recognizing bravery of Afghan forces and encouraging cooperation.
• Strengthening Governance: Role of law, order, and national cohesion in preventing such tragedies.
• National Resolve: Using the tragedy to reinforce unity, peace, and development in Afghanistan.

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

Dear brothers and sisters, beloved compatriots!

I express my profound grief and intense sorrow over the martyrdom of our fellow citizens in Zabul, who were beheaded in a painful and tragic manner by criminal extremist elements. I share in the grief of every single family of the victims. This is not the tragedy of one region or one ethnic group; this is the tragedy of Afghanistan. This is the collective pain of a nation; this is a dagger that our enemies wish to plunge into the heart of our unity and integrity.

From east to west and from north to south, our people suffer from this incident; they endure the crime committed against our compatriots and feel a sense of loathing. This is not the only painful incident of its kind perpetrated by our enemies. Every day, in every corner of this country—be it Badakhshan, Nangarhar, Helmand, Faryab, Kunduz, or Paktika—we witness the martyrdom of some, the wounding of others, and the mourning of bereaved families.

Our enemies seek to strip us of our "unity and solidarity" by creating incidents to which they give an ethnic or regional color. They have seen that they have suffered ignominious defeats on other fronts. They have seen that their blind logic has no place in this land. They have seen that their war yields nothing but their own humiliating defeat. They have seen that on no front are they capable of facing our brave soldiers—soldiers composed of Pashtuns, Tajiks, Hazaras, Uzbeks, Turkmens, Pashais, Nuristanis, Baloch, and all the ethnic groups of the country. Like a "solid structure" (Banyan-e Marsous), they stand with power and gallantry against criminals, mercenaries, the cold-hearted, the dark-minded, the anti-civic, the saboteurs, and the sworn enemies of this water and soil. They defend the homes of the nation and strike a crushing blow to the heads of terrorists.

Throughout this year, our enemies tried to secure a geography for their dark rule. They exerted all their efforts to remove regions of the country from government control so they could turn them into nests of horror and barbarism. They attempted to find a way to establish their shameful rule in a corner of this land, as they did in the past, to make it a base for further crimes. They wanted to ignite the fire of war and insecurity in every point of this country they could.

Now that their defeat in these arenas has become a certainty and their sinister hopes have been blown away, they have pinned their hopes on only one thing: sowing the seeds of discord and division among the ethnic groups of this country. They know that victory over our people through force and coercion is impossible, and as long as the unity and steadfastness of this nation remains, it will not bow to any power. Therefore, all their subversive efforts are now focused on creating a rift and division among us.

They consciously and maliciously commit crimes that can fan the flames of internal conflict among our people. They hope that by the prevalence of momentary emotions and uncontrollable feelings, the space for wisdom and reflection will be narrowed, and the environment will become conducive to their wickedness.

Beloved compatriots!

While we are in mourning for the innocent "Shukria" and her fellow travelers, and we feel the bitterness of this crime to the depths of our souls, we must thwart our enemies in this sinister, devilish conspiracy. We must not forget that we can only take revenge for our martyrs from these cold-hearted killers, capture the perpetrators of such a crime, bring them to justice, and ensure accountability if we all stand beside one another. Our victory lies in our empathy.

Compatriot brothers and sisters!

From the beginning of the hostage crisis, I gave direct instructions that every possible effort be made to preserve the lives of the hostages and rescue them from the enemy's clutches. I personally followed the progression of events. You may have heard in the news that in the first operation launched to rescue the hostages, more than 90 terrorists were killed. Those from our defense forces who were martyred in that operation belonged to various ethnic groups of this country. In another operation, conducted with the decisive support of international forces, another number of criminals were eliminated. During this period, the enemy moved the hostages more than 56 times to keep them out of reach of our forces and the cover of our operations. It was during these types of operations that 19 hostages were released in one instance and 8 others in another.

Following the recent horrific incident, I instructed the authorities to exert every effort to identify, arrest, and bring the perpetrators of this crime to the severest punishment. The pain of all these martyrs—whether from Jaghori, Yahyakhel, Shinwar, Helmand, Warduj, Faryab, or Ghor—is my pain; it is the shared pain of our nation. Like you, I will not rest until the perpetrators of these crimes are brought to justice. Furthermore, I have ordered all necessary measures within the government's capabilities to secure the country’s highways and prevent the recurrence of such incidents.

We are determined to take revenge for the blood of these compatriots, and we will spare no effort in this regard. However, let us remember that all of this is possible only if we master our emotions, avoid reactions that cause chaos, and prevent the watering of the seeds of discord that our enemies sow.

Respected citizens!

The bitter experiences we faced during the internal wars of the 1990s, and the terrible experiences that the oppressed people of Iraq, Yemen, Libya, and Syria face today, carry a message for us: maintaining the order of governance and strengthening the pillars of law is the only successful way to confront sedition, insecurity, and rebellion. Any ill-considered or emotional act that damages the rule of law and paves the way for disorder is, in truth, an aid to those enemies who seek to destroy the trust between the people and the government in order to commit more crimes and wish for the ruin of Afghanistan.

Dear brothers and sisters!

I repeat my commitment to you once again: we will take revenge for the blood of our martyrs from ISIS, the Taliban, and any other terrorist group that is complicit in such crimes. We are also determined to strive more than ever for the realization of social justice at all levels and in all parts of the country, and for the eradication of discrimination among the ethnic groups and people of Afghanistan. We do not want to witness further deprivation in Ghor, Paktia, Badakhshan, Kunar, Daikundi, Uruzgan, or any other point of our country. We do not want any individual in this country to feel subjected to discrimination or disparity.

We want the blood of our martyrs to become a means for the consolidation of our national covenant and to guide us toward a tomorrow where sorrows and pains are minimized as much as possible. We want stability, tranquility, and progress in our beloved country, Afghanistan. It is necessary that the crimes the enemies commit to divide us instead call us toward even greater unity and brotherhood so that, in this way, the enemies of the motherland remain frustrated and failed in their goals.

May Afghanistan be victorious! Long live Afghanistan!