On 29 September, the Taliban warned the US government to stop violating Afghanistan’s airspace in order to avoid any “negative consequences.”

“We recently saw [the] United States violating all international rights, law and … commitments [made] to the Islamic Emirate [the Taliban] in Doha, Qatar, as Afghanistan’s sacred airspace is being invaded by US drones,” the Deputy Minister of Information and Culture, Zabihullah Mujahid, said via a statement.

“We call on all countries, especially the United States, to treat Afghanistan in line with international rights, laws, and commitments […] in order to prevent any negative consequences,” Mujahid added.

Many have condemned the continued presence of US drones in Afghanistan after an airstrike on 29 August targeted the car of an aid worker who was applying for US residency, killing him and his family – including seven children.

Initially, US forces claimed the strike had targeted an ISIS suicide bomber, but they were later forced to admit the strike had killed an entire Afghan family.

US officials offered no comments on the Taliban’s warning.

The Taliban’s statement reportedly came in response to recent comments by the Pentagon which said Washington retains “all necessary authorities to execute over-the-horizon counterterrorism operations” in Afghanistan.

“There is currently no requirement to clear airspace with the Taliban and we do not expect that any future over-the-horizon counterterrorism strikes would hinge on such a clearance,” John Kirby, spokesman for the US Defense Department, recently told media.

The statement by the Taliban also comes just days after Taliban fighters reportedly discovered two huge weapon caches hidden by US forces before their hasty withdrawal from the country.

According to local sources, the caches contained hundreds of thousands of bullets, weapons, missiles, and spare helicopter parts and were allegedly left in the country as part of a contingency plan in case US troops are redeployed to Afghanistan.