Several residents of Farkhar district in Takhar province claim that nomads, backed by the Taliban, have raided their pastures in Lazhda village, Farkhar, and seized approximately ten hectares of irrigated land used as grazing grounds.
Residents report that about eight days ago, nomads, supported by Taliban local authorities, settled in Lazhda village and the foothills adjacent to Khusda and Dara-e Aahu villages. They add that when locals protested this action, Taliban forces opened fire on the protesters, resulting in the death of one resident.
Saadiq (pseudonym), a resident of Lazhda village in Farkhar district, told the Hasht-e Subh Daily that the disputed area, known as “Dasht-e Fargarda,” spans approximately ten hectares of pastureland. He said: “The Taliban wanted to take a pasture from the people, and the people protested, but they faced a harsh response from the Taliban local authorities in Farkhar. The Taliban fired on the people, and a 60-year-old man named Faiz Mohammad was killed.”
This Farkhar resident added: “The people carried the body from Farkhar to Taloqan, the provincial capital of Takhar, but no Taliban official listened to us. They threatened us not to protest, so we calmed down and returned home.”
Sattar (pseudonym), a community elder from Lazhda village in Farkhar district, told the Hasht-e Subh Daily that the pasturelands now occupied by nomadic herders have long been used by Lazhda villagers for grazing their livestock, passed down through generations.
This Lazhda resident further stated: “This area is the collective property of Lazhda’s people, used as pastureland by locals. The nomads arrived with drills, vehicles, weapons, and tents, and with Taliban support, they settled on our land. When we protested this Taliban action, they suppressed our protests.”
Omid (pseudonym), another resident, strongly criticized the Taliban’s behavior, saying: “We are fed up with the Taliban’s actions. They take our land and homes; when we protest, we are arrested, imprisoned, or even killed. Where can we go, and to whom can we complain? A poor, helpless man who only had a few goats, sheep, and a piece of ancestral land, defending his rights, was killed by the Taliban themselves.”
Meanwhile, a local source, who wished to remain anonymous, told the Hasht-e Subh Daily: “These nomads are directly supported by Mawlawi Shamsuddin Homayoun, the current Taliban district governor of Farkhar, originally from Kandahar, and Qari Naqib, the Taliban police commander in this district. These two individuals are the main supporters of the nomads’ settlement in Farkhar and are actively involved in seizing the people’s pasturelands.”
Since the Taliban’s takeover, over the past nearly four years, nomads have come to Farkhar district with their livestock every spring and summer. During this period, tensions and clashes have consistently occurred between them and residents.
Residents of Farkhar district complain about the destruction of their pastures and farms by the nomads’ livestock, as well as harassment by this group, noting that tensions between nomads and local communities in the district have significantly increased.
You can read the Persian version of this report here:
دعوا بر سر علفچر در فرخار تخار؛ طالبان یک باشنده بومی را کشتند
