KABUL — Several people were killed on Thursday in the Afghan city of Asadabad when Taliban fighters fired on people waving the national flag at an Independence Day rally, said media reports.

According to Pakistani media AAJ News, several people were killed in the Afghan city of Asadabad, the capital of Kunar province, when Taliban fighters fired on people waving the national flag at an Independence Day rally, a day after three people were killed in a similar protest in Jalalabad.

Despite the promise of peace in Afghanistan, the Taliban on Thursday fired on protesters waving the national flag in the city of Asadabad which led to a stampede, killing many, reported news agency Reuters.

In the first signs of popular opposition to the insurgents, the protesters in Asadabad were reportedly waving the national flag after tearing down the white flags of the Taliban. It isn’t clear whether the casualties resulted directly from the firing or the subsequent stampede.

"Hundreds of people came out on the streets," Reuters quoted a witness named Mohammed Salim as saying. "At first I was scared and didn't want to go but when I saw one of my neighbors joined in I took out the flag I have at home."

"Several people were killed and injured in the stampede and firing by the Taliban," the witness from the eastern city, the capital of Kunar province, added. The Taliban has not commented on the incident yet.

There were also protests in the eastern city of Jalalabad and a district of Paktia province. Afghanistan celebrates its 1919 independence from British control on Aug. 19.

First Vice President Amrullah Saleh, who claimed the Afghan Presidency and is trying to rally opposition to the Taliban after President Ghani fled the country, expressed support for the protests.

"Salute those who carry the national flag and thus stand for the dignity of the nation," he said on Twitter. The Taliban did not comment on the incident yet.

The latest firing will again raise questions about the Taliban’s assurances of them being a moderate group as against their extremist version when they ruled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001, before they were ousted by the US-led foreign forces. — Agencies