Islamabad – A video by a member of the Afghan Taliban Ministry of Vice and Virtue, referred to as Maulana Muhammad Naseem, has caused a recent spate of diplomatic confrontation between Afghanistan and Pakistan.

In the video that is now being shared extensively over the Internet, the official declares the existing ruling system in Pakistan a disbelieving system and declares the fight against it a personal duty of Muslims.

The comments have not only attacked the Pakistani state, but have also attacked Pakistani prominent scholars, including religious leader Mufti Taqi Usmani.

The video has created concern in the Pakistani security circles, which prompted a rapid diplomatic reaction.

Based on official sources by the Taliban in Afghanistan, who talked to HTN, the video is about two and a half years old, and the man in the video, Maulana Muhammad Naseem, has been arrested and is currently serving a jail term.

Although this clarification tries to mitigate the damage, it is part of a larger trend of anti-Pakistan publicity that has become a common factor amongst Taliban members.

A Pattern of Public Hostility

This is not the first such incidence. The clip of Maulana Naseem is actually the fifth time that a Taliban-linked personality has aired hostile statements against Pakistan in public.

In 2022, a video of Molvi Bashir, a member of the General Directorate of Intelligence (GDI), went viral. In the video, which was captured at the Torkham border, he was caught on camera making derogatory remarks against Pakistan to the extent of calling it Israel.

Taliban allegedly arrested another general, known as Mubeen, a year later, on similar grounds.

Recently, a prominent religious scholar, Abdul Sami Ghaznawi associated with the group was spotted declaring a fatwa on Pakistan.

Moreover, a regular stream of anti-Pakistan rhetoric is found on social media platforms, particularly on X (formerly Twitter), where accounts affiliated with the Taliban’s GDI frequently glorify sentiments of hatred toward Pakistan.

This cycle of popular persecution poses a major contradiction to the official attitude of the Taliban supreme leader, Mullah Hibatullah. He has already issued a fatwa that attacks on Pakistan are not allowed by Islamic rule. This dichotomy creates a pertinent query on how much of the Taliban factions Mullah Hibatullah has authority over.

The repeated rebellious behavior of mid-level officials and the exaltation of the anti-Pakistan sentiments are telling of a strong rift between the diplomatic stance of the leadership and the sentiments of some of its members.

This contradiction also adds some background to the fact that several of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) members were found to be of Afghan nationality.

Pakistan’s Response

The latest video has elicited a lot of dissatisfaction among Pakistani security officials. They consider it a threat to the very delicate peace and stability of the border area. In reaction, they are proposing taking the matter to the United Nations (UN) and to begin negotiations with the Taliban leadership via the Foreign Office.

This political move is meant to officially express the grievances of Pakistan and demand an official promise that such statements in the future will be avoided.

The events highlight the unstable and tense status of the relationship between the two neighboring nations. Although Pakistan has always been on the side of a stable and secure Afghanistan, the persistence of anti-Pakistan sentiments in the Taliban ranks is a significant barrier on the road to the establishment of stable trust and cooperation.

The problem is of crucial concern to Pakistan, as it directly affects its national security, especially on the porous border in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, a province that has been the victim of cross-border militancy.