Members of the Hazara minority viciously tortured by Taliban

Taliban have recently “massacred” and tortured several members of the Hazara minority in Afghanistan. The witnesses are offering accounts of the killings. This massacre took place in the Ghazni province in early July.

After taking over Kabul on Sunday, the Taliban have tried to maintain a restrained image. But Amnesty International said that the incident is acting as a horrifying indication for Taliban rule.

The Hazara community is the third largest ethnic group in Afghanistan. They are the practitioner of Shia Islam. They are facing long-term discrimination and persecution in Sunni Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The report that started surfacing on Thursday said that the Taliban had killed nine Hazara minority men in Malistan district in eastern Ghazni province.

The rights group has also interviewed the eyewitnesses. They have reviewed all the photographic evidence after the massacre. Villagers say that they have escaped to the mountains while the fighting took place between Taliban fighters and government forces.

When some of them returned to the village to collect the food, they say that the Taliban had looted their homes. Also, the Taliban were waiting for them. Some men who passed through Mudarakhts got ambushed.

They have shot at least 6 men. They were shot in the head while they tortured three to death. According to the witness, they strangled one mend with his scarf and sliced off his muscles. They shot another person to pieces.

Another eyewitness said that they asked the fighters about the brutality they are imposing on them. The fighter answered, “When it is the time of conflict, everyone dies; it doesn’t matter if you have guns or not. It is the time of war.”

Agnes Callamard, the secretary-general of Amnesty, said, “The cold-blooded brutality of these killings is a reminder of the Taliban’s record and a horrifying indicator of what Taliban rule may bring.”

“These targeted killings are proof that ethnic and religious minorities remain at particular risk under Taliban rule in Afghanistan.”

They have cut the mobile phone services in many areas to prevent any information from leaking. The Taliban are infamous for their brutal rule. In a press conference, the militant group said that they would not take any revenge attacks on anyone who has worked with US forces. They will also grant rights to women under sharia law. But the threats have warned that they would go door to door to search for people who worked with NATO forces or with the previous government.

Credits: BBC