Mohammad Ismail Khan, a former jihadi commander, has reacted to the Taliban’s widespread arrests and harassment of women in Herat, calling it “unacceptable.”
On Tuesday, June 9, he said in a statement that the increasing harassment of women and mass arrests in Herat are “neither forgivable nor tolerable.”
The jihadi leader warned the Taliban in his message, saying: “History shows that no government has ever succeeded through force, repression, and humiliation of people, and none ever will.”
Ismail Khan urged the women of Herat to resist pressure, saying the situation would not last.
He also described the actions, which he called “primitive, reckless, and ignorant,” as a violation of citizens’ “dignity, honor, and human and Islamic values.”
According to him, arbitrary restrictions on women and girls in Herat are an “insult” to the dignity of the people of the province.
He further stated that promoting religious rules through “unprincipled and arbitrary methods” leads only to “religious aversion and weakening of beliefs.”
Referring to the country’s economic and social situation, Ismail Khan said that people continue to suffer from “tyranny, lawlessness, lack of accountable and legitimate governance, and poverty,” adding that abusing women is a humiliation of the people.
In his statement, he said, “The dignity of our people is our red line, and silence in the face of injustice against women is a betrayal of Afghanistan’s identity.”
Addressing the girls of Herat, he said, “Your voice is the voice of the awakened conscience of society.”
Earlier today, the Taliban violently suppressed a public protest in Herat’s Jebrail area and opened fire on demonstrators.
