Ubiquitous
2024-04-25 01:05:05 UTC
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Permalinkchief of the General Staff of the Taliban's Armed Forces, was asked
about reports of Taliban members arresting, harassing, and killing
former soldiers and officials who had served during the Republic era
(2002-2021). Qari Fasihuddin Fitrat responded, "I reject this. This is
a lie. It has no basis; and no one who was in the previous system has
been arrested, imprisoned, beaten, and this is false news."[1]
Three days after the Taliban fighters entered Arg, the Presidential
Palace, in Kabul on August 15, 2021, a "General Amnesty" was announced
by Enamullah Samangani, a member of the Cultural Commission of the
Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA, i.e., the Afghan Taliban), who
also told Afghans: "You should restart your routine life with full
confidence." So, Qari Fasihuddin Fitrat's contention that reports about
the Taliban forces killing former officials have no basis could be
believed if the amnesty was upheld. However, evidence appearing in
Afghan media contradicts Qari Fasihuddin Fitrat's denial because the
Taliban forces are killing former soldiers regularly.
On February 19, General Farid Ahmadi, the commander of the Commando
Corps in the former government, said in an interview that the Taliban
rulers had promised general amnesty, but it was a false promise. The
Taliban had detained thousands of former soldiers and security
officials since they took control of Afghanistan, he said, adding that
this policy had forced them to form a group of 9,000 commandos aimed at
supporting the former security forces. General Ahmadi said that the
Taliban's refusal to uphold their promise of general amnesty and
betrayal has deepened the sense of distrust among the Afghan populace.
He said his group's long-term goal is to liberate Afghanistan from the
Taliban.
In January 2022, the Guardian quoted the United Nations as saying that
it received "credible allegations" that more than 100 members of the
ousted Republican regime, its security forces, and those who worked
with international troops had been killed since the Taliban took over
control of Afghanistan.
In April 2022, an international media report highlighted that the
Taliban targeted and executed former soldiers and officials, subjecting
them to torture and death. Specifically, the report documented the
tragic fates of several people: Banu Negar, a female police officer,
was murdered on September 5, 2021; four former soldiers met a similar
fate in September 2021; Mohammad Hashim, an Afghan police chief, was
assassinated on October 1, 2021. Furthermore, the report revealed that
within the first eight months of the Taliban's control of Kabul, 490
former soldiers and their family members either disappeared or fell
victim to violence.
Not all the killings by the Taliban are reported. It is not possible to
list all such killings. However, if we examine reports that have
appeared in the Afghan media during the first three months of 2024,
Qari Fasihuddin Fitrat's claim falls flat on its face. Let us look at
some of the recent cases that reveal how the Taliban are targeting and
killing former security personnel systematically.
In March this year, Afghan media reported several cases of former
security officials being arrested, tortured, or killed by the Taliban
forces. According to a report published by Afghanistan International on
March 3, the Taliban intelligence forces arrested Agha Lali, a former
national security director of Lashkargah City, along with seven of his
former colleagues. The arrests occurred in various areas of the city of
Lashkargah in Helmand province. Lali and his colleagues had served
during the previous government of Afghanistan.
In the first week of March 2024, Paigah News Agency published a report,
saying that the Taliban had set fire to the house of Kamaluddin Nezami,
the former governor of Panjshir province. According to the report, the
Taliban had converted Nezami's house into a camp, where ten Taliban
soldiers were stationed. This cruel act not only targets individuals
but also tries to remove any signs of resistance to the Taliban rule.
On March 11, 2024, NRF News reported, the Taliban killed a former
security official in Kabul City. The victim, identified as Asadullah,
had previously served in the National Directorate of Security in
Jawzjan province during the Republic era. This act of violence serves
as a stark reminder of the grave consequences faced by those who oppose
Taliban rule or served during the previous government. On the same day,
March 11, the Taliban arrested a former member of the police forces
named Shafi Ahmad. Ahmad, a resident of Panjshir province, was arrested
in Kabul city. According to the Khorasan Times, he had served during
the Republican era.
On March 24, as the NRF News has reported, the Taliban killed a former
member of the Afghan army in the Koh Daman region of Kabul province.
According to the report, Colonel Tawoos was working in his field when
the Taliban arrested him, tortured him, stabbed him, and ultimately
killed him by gunfire. The killing of Tawoos shows the Taliban's
ruthless tactics in eliminating perceived threats to their authority.
On March 25, the Taliban forces killed Basheer, a former member of the
local police, in Kunduz City near his residence, As the Paigah News
Agency has reported. Basheer had worked during the previous government.
In the last week of March, the NRF News Agency reported that the
Taliban had arrested three people in Panjshir province. These
individuals had previously worked in the security departments of the
former Afghan government. The arrests occurred in the Khenj district of
the province. This highlights the Taliban's systematic targeting of
people associated with the former government and contributing to
widespread fear among the population.
On March 28, Afghan journalist Sami Jahesh shared a picture on X
(formerly Twitter), saying that Dawlat Mohammad, who served as the
officer of Maimay district also known as Darwaz-e Payeen district in
Badakhshan province under the previous government, had surrendered the
district to the Taliban in exchange for money. This resulted in the
deaths of 25 personnel from that district, including the deputy
national security and the police commander. The tweet also said that
Dawlat Mohammad had since entered Iran on the Taliban's orders and
introduced himself as a member of the National Resistance Front (NRF)
of Afghanistan, one of the main anti-Taliban resistance groups. If this
report is correct, it means the Taliban might be pursuing their
opponents abroad.
During January and February 2024, a similar pattern can be seen of the
Taliban forces systematically targeting the former security and police
officials. On January 4, A Taliban member killed a former government
police officer in the Gizab district of Uruzgan province. The Taliban
intelligence arrested a former government soldier named Mohammad Amin
in the Yakawlang district of Bamyan province on January 8 of this year.
Ali Gul Haydary, a former commando of the previous government, was
killed by the Taliban in Kabul on January 16. The Taliban forces shot
and killed two former soldiers in the Kuh-e Chehel Dokhtaran area of
Kabul on January 16.
On January 18, the Taliban killed a person in Kabul who had previously
worked in the security sector during the former government. The victim,
identified as Ali Gul Hussaini, hailed from the Nawur district of
Ghazni province. He had recently returned to Afghanistan from Iran. On
January 18, the Taliban arrested Sayed Mustafa, a former army officer
from Bamyan province, accusing him of being the main perpetrator of the
bombing in front of the Barchi City Center in western Kabul. On the
same day, former national security soldier Mohammad Yasir was
mysteriously shot dead in Dah village of Baharak district, Badakhshan
province. Yasir had served in the government before the Taliban seized
power in August 2021.
On January 19, a car belonging to a Taliban judge struck and killed
Javad Azimi, a former member of the security forces in Takhar province.
The incident occurred after a confrontation between the Taliban judge's
son and Azimi, leading to an attack by the judge. The Taliban arrested
two soldiers of the former government, Abdul Azim and Golestan, both
residents of Panjshir province, in Kabul on January 20. The body of
Sardar Mohammad, a former Afghan soldier, was discovered two months
after his arrest by the Taliban. The incident occurred in Pol-e-Khomri
city of Baghlan province on January 20. The Taliban forces arrested
Atajan Haqbayan, the former head of the Zabul provincial council, in
Shahr-e-Safa, Zabul province on January 20. On January 24, the Taliban
arrested Obaidullah, a former soldier, in Kabul city. He had been
residing in Kabul but originally hailed from the Abshar district of
Panjshir province.
Incidents in February 2024 also refute Qari Fasihuddin Fitrat's claim
that the Taliban are not involved in such activities. On February 1,
the Taliban shot dead Muhammad Ishaq, the former chief of the
Directorate of Crime of the Tala Wa Barfak district of Baghlan
province. Safiullah, an associate of local Taliban commander Qari Miraj
shot Ishaq in front of people in the district. On February 1, the
Taliban intelligence arrested three members of the security forces of
the former government of Afghanistan in Bamyan province.
The Taliban intelligence forces arrested Abdul Rahman Zarmati, the
former district governor of Zurmat district of Paktia province, from
the Ahmad Shah Baba Mina also known as the Arzan Qimat area of Kabul on
February 3. Taliban killed Sa'adullah, a former member of the security
forces of the previous government, in the Sayed Khel district of Parwan
province. Sa'adullah, a former police officer, had been previously
detained by the Taliban. Despite his release facilitated by local
elders, he was tragically killed by the Taliban on February 3, 2024.
Afghan Taliban forces have emerged as the face of persecution of women
and opponents (image courtesy: Twitter)
On February 4, it emerged that the Taliban militants killed a former
soldier of the previous government in the Imam Sahib district of Kunduz
province. The Taliban accused him of being a member of ISKP and they
presented him to the public as a kidnapper. Shockingly, on December
2023, his body was displayed in public for hours after the incident.
Paigah News Agency published a report on February 4, saying that the
Taliban took a former soldier named Saja out of his house in Saadullah
village and shot him dead in Sayed Khel district of Parwan province.
On February 8, the Taliban fighters killed a former government soldier
named Shafiq in the Dand Wa Patan district of Paktia province. Shafiq
served as a soldier in the second border battalion of Paktia province
during the previous government of Afghanistan. On the same day, Reza, a
former soldier who had served in the police headquarters of Daykundi
province, was arrested by the Taliban fighters in the Jalrez district
of Maidan Wardak province.
The Taliban fighters also arrested a security official of the former
government in the Jalrez district of Maidan Wardak province on February
9. On the same day, the Taliban killed Abdullah Nahrinwal, a former
military commander of the previous government, in the Nahrin district
of Baghlan province. On the very next day, Khaso Khan, a former
government soldier, was shot dead by the Taliban in Ghalbla village of
Almar district, Faryab province.
An anti-Taliban X (formerly Twitter) account shared a post on February
14 saying that Afghan Taliban fighters attacked the residence of former
government security official Hussain Hussaini in Kabul City. The attack
led to his death. Paigah News Agency released a report on February 17,
saying that the Afghan Taliban fighters abducted the families of three
former soldiers in the village of Mian Shahr, located in the Khost
district of Baghlan province. On February 18, Afghan Women News
published a report detailing the arrest of Qaisar Khanjari, a former
government policeman residing in the Khushamand district of Paktika
province the Taliban regime. Khanjari, recently deported from Iran, had
sought refuge in Helmand province, where he resided in a relative's
house.
Amidst such incidents, reports of atrocities committed by the Taliban
regime continue to surface, raising grave concerns about human rights
violations and the erosion of civil liberties. The abduction and
detention of people like Khanjari reflect a broader pattern of
intimidation and repression. On February 9, a report published by the
Hasht-e Subh Daily revealed that soldiers of the former Republic
regime, who are currently residing in Pakistan, forwarded a letter to
the United Nations on February 8. The letter highlighted the alarming
situation in Afghanistan since the fall of the Republic government to
the Taliban, noting that hundreds of soldiers are being subjected to
daily arrests, torture, and killings by the Taliban.
Despite Qari Fasihuddin Fitrat's strong denials of mistreatment,
detention, killing, and violence against former soldiers and officials
from the previous governments, the situation on the ground presents an
alarming reality. This contradiction exposes the hypocrisy of the
Taliban regime and its double standards. While projecting a sanitized
facade to the world, the Taliban engage in harsh actions against former
officials. During the Republic era from 2002 to August 2021,
Afghanistan aimed to establish democratic governance, rule of law,
accountability of those in power, and a culture of human rights.
However, the Taliban's behavior since seizing power in August 2021
reflects a disregard for these principles, perpetuating violence and
repression against the Afghan people.
After Prophet Muhammad's victory in Mecca in the years 629-630, he
displayed remarkable mercy and forgiveness. Despite facing years of
hostility and persecution from the non-Muslims of Mecca, Prophet
Muhammad offered, upon its conquest, a general amnesty to the
inhabitants of Mecca. This act exemplified the Islamic principles of
compassion, reconciliation, and forgiveness, fostering unity among the
formerly warring factions. In contrast, the Taliban's promise of a
general amnesty in Afghanistan proved hollow and insincere. Despite
initially pledging to provide amnesty to former soldiers and officials,
they failed to uphold this commitment. Instead, they resorted to
harassment, arrests, and killings, betraying the trust of the people,
and deviating from the path of Sunnah, the teachings and practices of
Prophet Muhammad.
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Let's go Brandon!