Taliban fighters have extrajudicially executed at least dozens of suspected members and supporters of the ISIS-K militant group in the eastern part of Afghanistan, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a report and condemned the abuses.

On Thursday, the global human rights group said it documented the alleged abuses in eastern Nangarhar and Kunar provinces.

In its report, HRW said, “Since the Taliban took power in August 2021, residents of Nangahar and Kunar … have discovered the bodies of more than 100 men dumped in canals and other locations [between August 2021 and April 2022].” 

The two eastern provinces, which also border Pakistan, are suspected to have active bases of the Islamic State of Khorasan Province (ISIS-K), a regional affiliate of the global terrorist group, ISIS.

Soon after coming to power, the Taliban and ISKP fighters were involved in brutal and violent attacks on each other, mainly in Nangahar and Kunar provinces. Taliban forces had “carried out abusive search operations” against residents they suspected of sheltering or supporting ISIS-K members, the report alleges.

Night raids conducted by the Taliban fighters also saw illegal detention and torture of the residents. In many cases, family members were not told the whereabouts of the detainees.  

Patricia Gossman, the associate Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said, “Taliban authorities appear to have given their forces free rein to detain, ‘disappear,’ and kill alleged militants.” 

Significantly, almost similar treatment was meted out to soldiers and officials of the former government, who had surrendered to the Taliban in exchange for amnesty. 

The bodies recovered by the residents showed evidence of torture and brutal executions, including some with missing limbs and ropes around their necks. Others had their head beheaded or slit throats, according to the report. 

Reacting to the report, the Taliban’s chief spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid termed the report “baseless,” and added local authorities had investigated these “rumours” but found not a single body in Nangarhar or other areas. 

Rejecting the report, he said, “The propaganda being spread by some well-known international organizations in this regard is disturbing and unfortunate.” 

(SAM)