By Our Correspondent

KABUL/ISLAMABAD - Senior leaders of the banned militant group Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), including its chief Noor Wali Mehsud, are reportedly sheltering inside Kabul’s heavily secured Green Zone, Kabul -- home to foreign embassies and diplomatic missions -- raising alarm within the international community and prompting concerns that many diplomats may soon leave the Afghan capital, according to multiple sources.

Prominent Pakistani journalist Hamid Mir reported that diplomatic sources have confirmed the presence of TTP chief Noor Wali Mehsud, along with wanted militants Gul Bahadur, Bashir Zeb, and others sought by Central Asian states, inside Kabul's Wazir Akbar Khan area, a highly secure district that hosts foreign embassies and residences of senior diplomats.

"These sources claimed that presence of these wanted people near the residence of diplomats may invite deep trouble and that’s why many foreign diplomats may leave Kabul soon," Mir wrote on X.

"Presence of internationally declared terrorists is unacceptable even for the UN staff and some NGOs in Kabul. They registered their concerns with Taliban regime."

A Kabul-based journalist, speaking on condition of anonymity, endorsed Mir's claims and provided additional context about how TTP leaders have integrated into Kabul's high-security zones.

"These people have been living in posh Kabul areas since 2021," the journalist told The South Asia Times. "For some time after Al Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri's killing, they were moved outside Kabul. But some months later, they came back and are now based in those areas where no one can go, nor can anyone attack there."

The reference to Zawahiri's killing is significant; the Al Qaeda leader was killed in a US drone strike in July 2022 while staying at a safe house in Kabul's Sherpur area, another upscale neighborhood, demonstrating that even the Afghan capital's most secure districts are not immune to precision attacks.

The South Asia Times reported on February 28 that Noor Wali Mehsud held a high-level meeting with Afghan Taliban army chief Fasihuddin Fitrat at the Defense Ministry compound in Kabul. The meeting, attended by senior Taliban defense and intelligence officials along with Mehsud's top commanders, took place just one day after intense cross-border clashes between Pakistani and Afghan forces.

Taliban Defense Ministry spokesman Enayatullah Khowarazmi did not respond to requests for comment at the time, despite having read a message sent via WhatsApp.

Later that evening, Mehsud released an audio message urging his fighters to support the Afghan Taliban, announcing a new campaign titled "Defending the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan."

"We have always supported the Afghan Taliban, and now it is time to support them again," Mehsud said in the recording.

- A longstanding sanctuary

Islamabad has long accused the Afghan Taliban of providing sanctuary and operational support to the TTP -- a terrorist group that shares ideological roots with the Afghan Taliban and has waged a deadly insurgency against the Pakistani state for years. Pakistani officials say TTP leaders and militants operate with relative freedom from bases in Afghan provinces, including Kunar, Nangarhar, Khost, Nuristan, Paktia, and Paktika.

The Taliban authorities in Kabul have consistently denied these allegations, reiterating their pledge not to allow Afghan territory to be used for attacks against any other country -- a key provision of the 2020 Doha Agreement with the United States.

However, the presence of TTP leadership inside Kabul's diplomatic enclave suggests a level of official protection that contradicts these public denials.

The concentration of internationally designated terrorists near diplomatic missions has created an untenable situation for foreign staff.

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If foreign missions begin withdrawing staff from Kabul, it would represent a significant blow to the Taliban's efforts to gain international legitimacy and maintain diplomatic engagement with the world.

- Regional implications

The reported sheltering of TTP leaders comes amid escalating tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Pakistan's military has conducted operations against militant hideouts inside Afghanistan as part of its ongoing "Operation Ghazab lil Haq," killing hundreds militants and destroyed dozens Taliban posts at border areas. 

A Kabul-based journalist who has covered security affairs for years suggested the reported meetings and sanctuary arrangements would not be surprising given the ideological and operational ties between the two Taliban movements.

"If the Afghan Taliban are prepared to risk deteriorating relations with Islamabad over the TTP, then meetings in Kabul and public declarations of support would not be unexpected," the journalist said.

The latest developments are likely to deepen mistrust between the two neighbors while raising serious questions about the Kabul administration sheltering terrorist leaders near diplomatic missions, a situation that could further isolate the Afghan Taliban regime.