Afghanistan: HRW asserts Taliban's assurance of safety is 'public relations stunt'

Ever since the terror outfit of Afghanistan took control of the country on August 15, they have been desperately trying to shed off the old cruel image of the previous regime. The hardline Islamist group has been aiming to gain support from the international community by allowing a few rights to women and citizens of the country. A US-based rights group has claimed that the Taliban's claims of preventing abuses and detaining abusers are nothing more than a "public relations stunt," and the lack of accountability makes clear the need for continued UN scrutiny of Afghanistan's human rights situation. According to Patricia Gossman, who is an associate Asia director at Human Rights Watch (HRW), since taking control of the country on August 15, the Taliban militants so far have killed or forcibly disappeared over 100 police and former intelligence officers. 

According to a 25-page report by Human Rights Watch, it documents the killing or disappearance of 47 former members of the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) military personnel, police, intelligence service members, and militia who had surrendered to the terrorist group between August 15 and October 31, 2021. The title of the report is "No Forgiveness for People Like You," and it's about "Executions and Enforced Disappearances in Afghanistan under the Taliban".

Gossman said, "The Taliban leadership's promised amnesty has not stopped local commanders from executing or disappearing the former Afghan security force members. The burden is on the Taliban to prevent further killings, hold those responsible to account, and compensate the victims' families," he added. HRW has claimed that it interviewed 40 people in person in the four provinces and another 27 by telephone, namely witnesses, relatives and friends of victims, journalists, health workers, and Taliban members. A commander in the Taliban stated that those responsible for atrocities "can not be forgiven".

Taliban continues to execute former officials and ISIS associates: HRW

The report noted that the Taliban leadership has asked the members of surrendering security force units to register to receive a letter guaranteeing their safety. However, this does not stop the Taliban forces from killing those members within days of registering. Apart from this, the Taliban have also been using the employment records that the former government left behind, using the data to identify people for arrest and execution.

Moreover, the terrorist group has also carried out night raids and abusive search operations to execute their suspects, mainly focusing on ex-security forces who have not yet surrendered. In Nangarhar province, the Taliban have also targeted those accused of supporting the Islamic State of Khorasan Province (ISKP), which is an association of the Islamic State known as ISIS.

Image: AP

With Inputs from ANI