Taliban implicated in mass killings of Tajik men

The report includes revelations of hundreds of instances of detention and torture. It also enumerates 160 extrajudicial killings of Afghan government and military personnel, 18 extrajudicial killings of members of the National Resistance Front, and 59 extrajudicial killings of persons “accused of affiliation” with ISIS-K. (The Taliban have previously killed members of the former Afghan government under the pretense of killing members of ISIS-K.)

Compared with data from other organizations, UNAMA’s figures seem incredibly low.

In January, the United Nations cited evidence of 100 extrajudicial killings of members of the Afghan military and government and 50 killings of alleged ISIS-K members. The New York Times found in April that nearly 500 members of the former Afghan government had been killed or disappeared by the Taliban during a six-month period. Human Rights Watch documented 100 reprisal killings in just four of Afghanistan’s 34 provinces between August and October 2021. Human Rights Watch also indicated two weeks ago that the bodies of over 100 men had been discovered in canals in eastern Kunar and Nangarhar provinces. Some of their corpses “showed evidence of torture and brutal executions.”

Gathering proof of Taliban attacks is difficult. According to volunteers in the evacuation community, the Taliban often quietly and effectively dispose of victims by stuffing them into car trunks and killing them in remote locations. Additionally, many Afghans fear going to the media after their loved ones are murdered because they face further retaliation from the Taliban.

Some, like the man who recently shared chilling allegations of Taliban mass killings with volunteer Leslie Merriman, are weary of kowtowing to Taliban threats. Ahmad, whose name has been changed for his protection, claimed that in September 2021 and February 2022, the Taliban took 600 hostages from the northern Afghan provinces of Panjshir, Kapisa, and Parwan. Ahmad said these hostages had fled to northern Afghanistan to find safety. Because they were Tajik men between the ages of 16 and 35, the Taliban believed they were preparing to join the National Resistance Front and fight Taliban forces.

After taking the men hostage, Ahmad said the Taliban claimed they would transport them to a prison in Kandahar. They prepared large vehicles to make appearances of an impending transfer. Meanwhile, they killed and buried the victims overnight, covering the graves with dirt and rocks. Onlookers said the Taliban blindfolded victims and tied their hands prior to killing them. The Taliban threatened those present with death if word of the mass graves leaked.

The Taliban has repeatedly demonstrated an unwillingness to take accountability for its members’ crimes. Spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid, for instance, responded to UNAMA’s report by claiming that “arbitrary arrests and extrajudicial killings are not allowed.” Whether the Taliban are unable to control their subordinate personnel or unwilling to acknowledge a strategic pursuit of reprisals is unclear. In either instance, Western assets must be deployed to ascertain the veracity of Ahmad’s claims and to determine where other mass killings may have occurred. Evidence of these crimes against humanity, and possible acts of genocide, should be brought before the International Criminal Court.

Regardless, it is clear that Afghans remain defenseless against a relentless wave of human rights violations.

Beth Bailey (@BWBailey85) is a freelance writer from the Detroit area.