Jamaat Ansarullah
جماعت انصارالله Ҷамоати Ансоруллоҳ
Flag used by Jamaat Ansarullah[1]
Leaders	Amriddin Tobarov (2006–2015) Muhammad Shafirov (2015–present)
Dates of operation	2006–present
Allegiance	Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (since 2021, denied by Afghan Taliban)
Motives	To turn Tajikistan into an Islamic Emirate similar to Afghanistan
Headquarters	Badakhshan, Afghanistan
Active regions	Badghis: Jawand Ab Kamari Badakhshan: Kuf Ab Khwahan Maimay Darwaz-e Bala Shekay
Ideology	Islamic fundamentalism Deobandi jihadism Wahabism Religious nationalism Revolutionism
Size	~300
Allies	Afghan Taliban (alleged; denied by the Taliban)[2] al-Qaeda (alleged) Turkistan Islamic Party
Opponents	Tajikistan National Resistance Front Islamic State - Khorasan Province
Battles and wars	Taliban insurgency Islamic State-Taliban conflict Republican insurgency in Afghanistan
Designated as a terrorist group by	Tajikistan

Jamaat Ansarullah (Tajik: Ҷамоати Ансоруллоҳ, Persian: جماعت انصارالله), also known as the Tajikistani Taliban (Tajik: Толибони Тоҷикистон, Persian: طالبان تاجیکستان, Tehrik-i-Taliban Tajikistan), is a Tajik Islamist militant movement currently based out of Badakhshan, Afghanistan. It is related to al-Qaeda.

History

Jamaat Ansarullah was founded in 2006 under the leadership of Amriddin Tabarov which was composed of Islamist and opposition members who refused to accept the 1997 armistice ending the Tajik Civil War. It gained prominence in 2010 when it perpetrated a suicide bombing in the city Khujand, Tajikistan targeting a police station. Three were killed and 25 were wounded. The group was banned by the Tajik government in 2012.

In 2015, the group's founder was killed by the Afghan National Security Forces. He would be succeeded by the son of one of his closest associates, Muhammad Shafirov, who is better known as Mahdi Arsalon.

During the 2021 summer offensive, the Afghan Taliban gave the Tajiki Taliban, and by extension Arsalon, security control over five districts in northern Badakhshan province.^[3]

In September 2021, Arsalon was reportedly planning to invade Tajikistan and consulted the Taliban Islamic Movement for operational guidance.^[4]

Manpower and recruitment

Much of them are the children and relatives of the original generation of fighters. Other reports indicate it has less than 100 fighters.^[4]

Ansarullah also recruits from Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Pakistan, Central Asia, and Russia. The individual who perpetrated the 2010 suicide bombing of a police station in Khujand was reported to have been trained in an al-Qaeda training camp.^[4]

Actions

The Tajik Taliban has operated out of northern Afghanistan since its founding receiving support from the Taliban and Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. The group currently serves as border guards in northern Badakhshan Province, being responsible for handling security by the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan for Kuf Ab, Khwahan, Maimay, Nusay, and Shekay. They also control Jawand and Ab Kamari in Badghis Province.

After building the watch tower, Tajikistan began taking the group seriously. The group spray painted "Mehdi Arsalon" in Badakhshan, Afghanistan, in a large font, which was visible from Tajikistan's autonomous Gorno-Badakhshan region. Tajikistani Taliban members and supporters, all of which are Tajik citizens, walked demonstratively along the Afghan side of the Panj River that separates Afghanistan and Tajikistan. It was reported that they came almost every day to their watch tower and yell threats with a loudspeaker insulting the Tajikistani authorities. Tensions were already high with the Afghan Taliban and Tajikistan due to Tajikistan supporting the Northern Alliance and the NRF, and Tajikistani authorities stated that the Taliban allowing the group to stay active and threaten Tajikistan increases distrust and makes them feel threatened, although the Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said in a speech that no threats will be made from Afghanistan to any neighboring countries, and that it was a case of a warlord abusing his power, and he called on Tajik government to cooperate with them to tackle the issue.^[5]

In 2021 and 2022 there were no significant activities of the group but however in 2023 there was a rise of Jamaat Ansarullah propaganda and activities. On 6 September 2023, at least three Jamaat Ansarullah members were killed by Tajikistani authorities. The three men were recruited and trained in Afghanistan.

Aims and objectives

The group aims to overthrow the current Tajik government and replace it with an Islamic state governed by Sharia law. In 2011, it issued a series of videos stating that Muslims who observed Salah and fasted but still supported democracy were infidels, and that God is killing unbelievers through them, therefore, they are blessed.^[6]

Ideology

The organisation along with other jihadist groups such as the Afghan Taliban, Pakistani Taliban, Al-Qaeda, Ansar al-Islam in Kurdistan, and the Turkistan Islamic Party had similar motivations and goals. The organisation aims to spread Islamic extremism to enforce Afghan Taliban-style fundamentalist Islam and Sharia law in Tajikistan and turn Tajikistan into an Islamic Emirate similar to Afghanistan.^[7]

References