Amnesty International has disclosed that in July, the Taliban carried out brutal torture and “massacred” multiple members of the Hazara minority in Afghanistan.
The Hazara community is the third largest ethnic group in Afghanistan, predominantly practicing Shia Islam, and has long faced discrimination and persecution in predominantly Sunni Afghanistan and Pakistan.
According to Amnesty International, witnesses have provided distressing accounts of the killings that occurred in Ghazni province in early July.
This revelation comes after the Taliban’s recent takeover of the Afghan capital Kabul on Sunday, August 15, as they attempted to portray a more restrained image.
The Taliban had pledged blanket amnesty and claimed that they would not engage in retaliation or retribution.
Amnesty International’s statement unveiled that the incident was a “horrifying indicator” of Taliban rule.
In a report released on Thursday, August 19, Amnesty stated that the nine Hazara men were killed between July 4 and 6 in Malistan district in eastern Ghazni province.
Villagers revealed that they had sought refuge in the mountains when clashes escalated between government forces and Taliban fighters. Some of them returned to the village of Mundarakht to gather food, only to find that the Taliban had looted their homes and lay in wait for them. Meanwhile, men passing through Mundarakht on their way home to their settlement were also ambushed.
Allegedly, a total of six men were shot, some in the head, and three were subjected to torture resulting in their death. Witnesses detailed that one man was strangled with his own scarf and had his arm muscles sliced off, while another victim was shot.
Agnès Callamard, Secretary-General of Amnesty International, commented, “The cold-blooded brutality of these killings serves as a reminder of the Taliban’s past atrocities and a frightening indication of what Taliban rule may entail.”
“These targeted killings provide evidence that ethnic and religious minorities remain especially vulnerable under Taliban rule in Afghanistan,” he added.
The report also mentioned that mobile phone services were disrupted in many of the areas captured by the Taliban, hence the information about the killings had not surfaced until now.
Amnesty urged the UN to investigate and safeguard those at risk.
The Taliban, who regained power on Sunday, were notorious for their harsh rule in Afghanistan, which deprived women and ethnic minorities of their rights before they were ousted by a US-led coalition in 2001.