The Taliban and their allies are accused of killing more than 100 former members of the Afghan government and security forces as well as Afghans who worked with foreign troops, according to a new UN report rejected by Islamic fundamentalists.
This document, a copy of which AFP consulted on Sunday, also notes a severe restriction of human rights in Afghanistan since the establishment of Taliban governance in the summer, in particular concerning women’s rights and the right to demonstrate. .
“Credible” reports
“Despite announcements of a blanket amnesty for former government officials, security forces and those who worked for foreign military personnel, Manua (United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan) continued to receive credible reports of homicides, enforced disappearances and other offenses against these people”, specifies this report by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres.
Since the Taliban seized Kabul on August 15, the UN mission has received more than a hundred reports of killings that it considers credible, details the text, affirming that more than two-thirds of these homicides were “extra-judicial killings committed de facto by the authorities or their affiliates”.
The Taliban deny outright
On Monday, the Taliban rejected the accusations contained in this report in their entirety. “The Islamic Emirate (name given by the fundamentalists to their regime) has not killed anyone since the announcement of the amnesty”, tweeted the Ministry of the Interior, assuring once again that the murders of former members of the security forces are due to personal rivalries or enmities.
In addition, the document continues, “human rights activists and media workers continue to face attacks, intimidation, harassment, arbitrary arrests, mistreatment and killings”. It is “a whole social and economic system that is disappearing”, commented Mr. Guterres, referring to the repression of peaceful demonstrations, the lack of access for women to the world of work and for girls to education.
No country has recognized the Taliban government at this stage. With poverty worsening and drought devastating agriculture in many areas, the UN has warned that half of the 38 million Afghans are at risk of food shortages. The Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution in December facilitating humanitarian aid to Afghanistan for one year, without violating international sanctions imposed on individuals and entities linked to the Taliban.