Afghan Taliban Chief Of Army Staff Qari Fasihuddin Fitrat: Military Preparedness To Confront

Speaking at a recent graduation ceremony, Afghan Taliban Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces Qari Fasihuddin Fitrat told cadets of the Taliban’s 313 Central Army Corps that military preparedness to confront unbelievers is obligatory on Muslims.

According to a Dari-language statement issued by the Afghan Defense Ministry on February 17, 2026, Fitrat said: “Preparedness is necessary in confronting those who cannot tolerate unity, consensus, the Islamic system, and their honor and greatness.”

The digits “313” in the Taliban army’s corps refer to the 313 Muslims led by Muhammad, the founder of Islam, at the Battle of Badr, which, taking place in the year 624 was the first battle of Islam. According to the statement, 153 soldiers from the 313 Central Corps graduated from the ceremony. Other officials, including corps commander Mullah Amir Khan Haqqani, also attended the ceremony.

Fitrat, addressing the cadets in Dari, said that military preparation against unbelievers was “a duty imposed by Allah on Muslims,” who must be ready to confront those who cannot accept the Islamic government and the Islamic system established by the Taliban.

Later, the Afghan Defense Ministry released the full video of Fitrat’s speech. He said: “The Islamic Emirate [of Afghanistan, i.e., the Afghan Taliban, IEA] has also paid full attention to military training, and even during the jihad [against U.S. and NATO forces], there was a fear that the Islamic Emirate’s mujahideen would be targeted, but the Islamic Emirate did not neglect the training of the mujahideen, and its training centers were active.”

Referring to the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021, Fitrat said that it was the attention of Taliban leaders that the world’s strongest power was defeated in Afghanistan, and now that the IEA is in power, it has provided an opportunity for the mujahideen to be trained more professionally.

“Now we have the equipment that was previously in the hands of our enemy, and we are training our mujahideen with these tools of combat,” he said. According to the report, Fitrat indicated that the IEA mujahideen are ready to maintain this Islamic system established by the Taliban government, and as long as one mujahid is alive, they will defend and protect it.

In general, he has recommended and advised the mujahideen to be fully prepared, receive religious and spiritual ed