Taliban Detains Hizb-ut-Tahrir’s Spokesperson & Several Members

The Hizb-ut-Tahrir party in Afghanistan has announced that the Taliban have detained Saifullah Mustanir, the spokesperson, and several other members of the party on charges of "spreading norms related to Islamic caliphate”.

According to Hizb-ut-Tahrir, the Taliban detained its members following a meeting.

On Wednesday, in a statement, the party urged the Taliban to release its members and denounced their detention as "illegal”.

Hizb-ut-Tahrir is an Islamist extremist group whose activities are banned in several countries, including Russia and Central Asia.

Amrullah Saleh, former Afghan government Vice-President, had also stated in February 2021 that Hizb-ut-Tahrir is not registered with the Ministry of Justice and does not have the right to organise gatherings or preach.

After the takeover of power, the Taliban prohibited the activities of this party and Jamiat Eslah Afghanistan, an Islamist social institution in Afghanistan.

The Taliban had previously detained members of Hizb-ut-Tahrir in various provinces of the country.

Hizb-ut-Tahrir, active in several countries, seeks to revive the caliphate in Islamic governments. In its statement, the group wrote that the Taliban in Afghanistan "has more potential to become a caliphate than any other system in the world”.