Over the past three years, Afghan citizens have lodged numerous complaints about land seizures, bullying, and the distribution of public properties by the Taliban. Recently, sources shared images and videos of the Ishkashim district market in Badakhshan with the Hasht-e Subh Daily, alleging that Taliban members have seized both government and private properties. According to these claims, individuals connected to the Taliban Chief of Army Staff have constructed shops on public and private lands in their names. The sources report that over 14 Taliban officials have built dozens of shops on state and private land under their own names, as well as those of their children, brothers, and relatives, depriving residents and shopkeepers of their rightful ownership.
Local sources state that Taliban commanders, particularly those linked to Fasihuddin Fitrat, the Taliban Chief of Army Staff, have taken over lands in Ishkashim and built shops in their names. Additionally, it is claimed that the Taliban have appropriated state properties belonging to the Ministries of Defense and Agriculture, distributing them among themselves.
Sources report that the Taliban forcibly took control of lands owned by the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation, and Livestock, as well as private properties, and have been constructing shops there. The construction is reportedly still ongoing.
The list of some local Taliban officials who have built shops in the Ishkashim market includes:
| No. | Name | Position | Number of Shops | Ownership | District | |||
| 1 | Amanuddin Mansoor | Former Governor of Badakhshan | 5 | Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock | Ishkashim | |||
| 2 | Hayatullah Hamidi | Former District Governor of Ishkashim | 4 | Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock, and Private | Ishkashim | |||
| 3 | Abdul Shahid | Taliban Mayor of Ishkashim | 3 | Ishkashim | ||||
| 4 | Qari Mahfouz | District Governor of Baharak | 2 | Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock | Ishkashim | |||
| 5 | Abdul Wahab | District Governor of Ragh | 3 | Ministry of Defense | Ishkashim | |||
| 6 | Qari Zaheer | Commander of Ishkashim Battalion | 8 | 6 from the Ministry of Defense and 2 Private | Ishkashim | |||
| 7 | Mosaweer | Head of Border Battalion | 6 | Private | Ishkashim | |||
| 8 | Commander Samad | Agriculture Director | 3 | Ishkashim | ||||
| 9 | Madad Shah | Land Registry Director | 2 | Ishkashim | ||||
| 10 | Abdul Karim | Deputy District Governor | 6 | Ishkashim | ||||
| 11 | Mullah Hafiz | Ishkashim | ||||||
| 12 | Mullah Jamil | Ishkashim | ||||||
| 13 | Commander Shamsullah | Ishkashim | ||||||
| 14 | Current Head of Agriculture | 2 | Ishkashim
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Sources claim that the Taliban seized lands in the “Agriculture” area and private locations to build shops. According to a list provided to the Hasht-e Subh Daily, Abdul Shahid, the Taliban mayor of Ishkashim, constructed three shops; Qari Mahfouz, the intelligence chief of Baharak district, built two shops in the Agriculture area; Abdul Wahab, the Taliban district governor of Raghistan, constructed three shops on Ministry of Defense land; Qari Zaheer, commander of the Ishkashim battalion, built eight shops—two in private areas and the rest on Ministry of Defense land; and Mosaweer, head of the border battalion, along with his father, commander Qadir (also known as Commander Danger), built six shops in a private area. Additionally, Amanuddin Mansoor, the former Taliban governor of Badakhshan, constructed five shops in the name of his brothers, Haji Amin and Haji Ayoub, on land owned by the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation, and Livestock.
Mullah Hafiz, Mullah Jamil, and Commander Shamsullah, according to local sources, also forcibly took over public and private lands to build shops. Sources state that commander Samad, the agriculture chief, constructed three shops; Madad Shah, the land registry chief, built two shops in his son Mashooq’s name; Abdul Karim, the deputy district governor, constructed six shops in his name, as well as in the names of his father and brother; and commander Baba Jan, the commander of Kishm district, built four shops on both private and public lands. Sources note that this list is extensive, with many Taliban fighters and commanders seizing public and private properties in the market to build shops.
One source commented, “The Ishkashim district center was a small town, but road construction came through and destroyed people’s stalls. This area belonged to the Ministries of Defense, Interior, Public Health, Agriculture, and some private properties. Only about five percent of Ishkashim’s population benefited from the land distribution, mostly those with close ties to the Taliban.”
Media reports also indicate that Jumma Khan Fateh, a Taliban commander in Badakhshan’s Darwaz region, has seized dozens of acres of land and pastures, selling them to his associates. Reports claim that these lands, located in the villages of Sandak, Balhida, and Rigwarak, were confiscated and sold by this commander.
Previously, sources in Badakhshan stated that the Taliban’s Commission for the Prevention of Land Seizure, in coordination with the Taliban Directorate of Justice and the Provincial Police Command, has confiscated private lands under the pretext of them being “seized and state-owned” properties. Sources report that the Taliban have confiscated over 10,000 acres of agricultural land belonging to civilians in various regions, including the Qargh Desert in Fayzabad, the capital of Badakhshan province. The Taliban commission allegedly took private lands under the guise of them being “government-seized” and returned them to their owners in exchange for payments. So far, the Taliban have not commented on the matter and have repeatedly dismissed such allegations as baseless.
You can read the Persian version of this daily report here:
غصب زمینهای دولتی و شخصی؛ طالبان بازار ولسوالی اشکاشم را بین خود تقسیم کردند | روزنامه ۸صبح
