Taliban Retaliating Against Former Government Employees’ Relatives, Reports Rights Group

According to a new report by Rawadari, a human rights organisation, the Taliban is retaliating against the family members and relatives of former Afghan government employees.

The report highlights instances such as the murder of an eight-year-old child in Bamiyan, whose mother served in the former government's police forces. Additionally, it sheds light on the killing of a 13-year-old child in Badakhshan, whose father was a member of the popular uprising forces.

The eight-year-old child was kidnapped on July 28, 2023, and a week later, his body was found in the capital of the province. A Badakhshani child was also killed by unknown individuals on August 25, 2023, in Shuhada district of Badakhshan province.

Rawadari’s new report states that in 2023, at least 82 employees of the former government of Afghanistan were victims of targeted and extrajudicial killings.

It included 68 former security forces members and 14 other employees of the former government's civil departments.

As per the report, in 2023, at least 506 people were killed, and 266 others were injured in various incidents of human rights violations in Afghanistan.

Former government employees, human rights defenders, Taliban opponents, and other citizens are the victims of these incidents.

According to the report, the fatalities include 390 men, 58 children, 38 women, and 20 individuals whose identities remain unidentified. These incidents encompass targeted, mysterious, and extrajudicial killings, as well as suicide attacks and the detonation of mines and explosives.