Border troops of Tajikistan’s State Committee for National Security (SCNS) have reported the elimination of four members of a terrorist organization who illegally crossed the state border from Afghanistan.
The incident occurred at around 12:30 a.m. on January 18 at the 7th border outpost “Khirmanjo” of the “Yol” border detachment, stationed in the Shamsiddin-Shohin district, Khatlon province. According to the authorities, the armed individuals entered Tajik territory from the village of Darbandak in the Khoun district of Afghanistan’s Badakhshan province.
The SCNS Border Guard Directorate stated that the intruders ignored lawful demands to surrender and opened armed resistance. During the ensuing clash, all four militants were neutralized. No casualties among Tajik border guards have been reported.
Three Kalashnikov assault rifles, one Krug rifle, six magazines, 183 rounds of ammunition, three mobile phones, a radio transmitter and a boat were seized at the scene.
Criminal proceedings have been instituted under three articles of Tajikistan’s Pena Code: Article 179 – terrorism. Article 335 — illegal crossing of the state border of the Republic of Tajikistan; and Article 195 — illegal trafficking of weapons, ammunition, explosives and explosive. An investigation is under way.
The SCNS said the situation along the Tajik-Afghan border remains under control and assured that all necessary forces and resources will continue to be deployed to ensure border security.
Border escalation
In recent months, the situation along the Tajik-Afghan border has significantly deteriorated. The latest incident is the fourth since late November last year.
On November 26 and 30, 2025, two attacks from Afghan territory targeted border areas of Tajikistan, killing five Chinese nationals and injuring five others. The attacks first struck the base of the Shohin-SM mining company in Khatlon’s Shamsiddin-Shohin district and later a road construction company in the Darvoz district of the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region (GBAO).
Tajikistan strongly condemned the attacks and demanded that the Taliban authorities ensure security along the shared border and detain all those responsible. Afghanistan’s Taliban-run Foreign Ministry said the attacks were carried out by groups seeking to “create instability and distrust among countries in the region.”
Another armed incursion occurred on the night of December 23–24 in the area of responsibility of the “Sarchashma” border detachment in Khatlon’s Shamsiddin-Shohin district. Three militants were killed during a clash with border guards, while two officers of the GKNB Border Troops were also killed.
According to the Afghan outlet Hasht-e Subh, the militants killed by Tajik border forces were members of the terrorist group Jamaat Ansarullah.
