Tajikistan’s Border Guard Forces have responded to an armed attack from Afghanistan that occurred on December 23, 2025, resulting in the deaths of two officers. The attack, which took place in the Shamsiddin-Shohin district of Khatlon province, was described by Tajik authorities as an attempted assault by three members of a terrorist organization.
The state-run news agency Khovar reports that in an official statement released on December 25, the Tajik Border Guard Service reported that the attack occurred at 11:30 PM on December 23 near Border Post No. 5 “Bogh” of 0341 “Sarichashma” Border Guard Unit. The attackers crossed the border into Tajikistan and attempted to strike a border checkpoint.
The statement highlighted that Tajik border guards discovered the location of the terrorists on December 24 at 11:15 AM. Despite being ordered to surrender, the attackers opened fire and resisted capture.
“A combat operation was conducted, resulting in the neutralization of all three terrorists,” the statement read. The attackers were found to be carrying three M-16 rifles, an AK-47 assault rifle, three foreign pistols with silencers, ten hand grenades, a night vision binocular, explosives, and other military equipment.
The attack tragically resulted in the deaths of two Tajik border guard officers, Zirehbon Navrouzbekov and Ismatullo Qurbonov.
The Border Guard Service further reported that this was the third armed assault from Afghanistan in the past month, marking a troubling pattern of terrorist activity and border violations that have resulted in both civilian and military casualties.
“The facts confirm the Taliban government’s serious and repeated inability to fulfill its international obligations and commitments to ensure security and stability along the Tajik-Afghan border and combat members of terrorist organizations,” the Border Guard Service declared.
The Tajik government expressed hope that the Taliban administration would apologize to the people of Tajikistan and take additional effective measures to ensure border security.
Currently, the situation on the border remains calm, with an ongoing investigation into the incident. However, this attack is part of a wider issue of escalating violence in the region.
Earlier reports from Radio Liberty’s Tajik Service, known locally as Radio Ozodi, and the Afghan newspaper Hasht-e Subh indicated that an armed group of smugglers from Afghanistan clashed with Tajik border guards, resulting in the deaths of two Tajik officers and several Afghan militants.
This incident follows two other attacks on Tajikistan’s border regions in late November, in which five Chinese nationals were killed and five others wounded. These assaults targeted a mining company based in Khatlon’s Shamsiddin-Shohin district and a construction company in the Darvoz district of the Gorno Badakhshan Autonomous Region (GBAO).
Tajikistan has strongly condemned these attacks and demanded that the Taliban arrest those responsible. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Taliban government has acknowledged that these assaults were aimed at creating instability and distrust between regional countries.
Tajik President Emomali Rahmon also condemned the attacks and instructed the country's security agencies to take decisive action to resolve the situation and prevent further incidents.
