Turkish Ambassador Meets Taliban Cultural Officials, Pledges Support for ‘Jihadi’ Museums
Cenk Ünal, the Turkish ambassador to Kabul, along with a delegation from the Turkish embassy, visited the General Directorate for the Preservation of Jihadi Values under the Taliban’s Ministry of Information and Culture. During the visit, he announced Turkey’s willingness to assist in the construction and development of so-called ‘jihadi’ museums in Afghanistan.
The visit comes as the Taliban seeks to establish new cultural institutions aimed at promoting a narrative aligned with their perspective of the last twenty years. Mawlawi Imdadullah Mansour, head of the directorate, stated that similar jihadi museums are to be established in various provinces, showcasing artifacts from the last two decades—a period most Afghans associate with war, instability, and foreign intervention.
Simultaneously, Hafez Nematullah Muntazir, head of Audiovisual Affairs, reported that the directorate is actively collecting, archiving, and publishing documents related to the events of the past twenty years.
At the conclusion of the meeting, the Turkish ambassador was presented with three magazines published by the directorate—Al-Samoud, Shahamat, and Tsark—as gifts. The meeting reflects the Taliban administration’s efforts to garner international support for initiatives that align with their official narrative, raising concerns over potential distortion of Afghanistan’s recent history.
