The National Mobilization Front (NMF) fighters killed one high-ranking Taliban commander and injured three militants in a guerrilla operation on the Zakhira Ab checkpoint near Kandahar city's third district at exactly 8:23 PM UTC on February 22, 2026, according to the Afghan National Mobilization Front Media Office statement posted on X. The NMF Deputy Directorate (Security) of the Afghan National Mobilization Front's Intelligence and Reconnaissance Department launched the attack, which successfully eliminated the Taliban outpost without harming NMF fighters, who returned safely, as stated in the X post by @NRFUpdates during the reporting window from 9:45:32 PM to 11:45:49 PM UTC on February 22, 2026. This operation marks a significant anti-Taliban action in Kandahar Province amid ongoing regional instability, following Pakistan's airstrikes on TTP camps in eastern Afghan provinces documented by ForumStrategic satellite images between 9:15 PM and 9:45 PM UTC on February 22, as reported in prior coverage from Kabul.
