The Taliban continue recruiting informants, pressuring citizens into spying for them while simultaneously tasking some with identifying attractive young women and boys. Sources introduced through individuals connected to certain Taliban intelligence members confirmed they were asked to find “beautiful girls and boys” on the group’s behalf. Those who spoke with the Hasht-e Subh Daily were referred through contacts linked to officials within the Taliban’s intelligence apparatus. They confirmed that after initial contact and several in-person meetings, they were asked to identify attractive girls and boys in exchange for payment. These individuals also say Taliban intelligence operatives showed them photographs, instructing them to locate people matching those physical profiles. According to their accounts, the mysterious killings of some girls in Kabul and several provinces may be connected to sexual abuse by Taliban members. They say those responsible have, in some cases, killed victims to prevent exposure.
One source, introduced through an intermediary to a Taliban intelligence member for potential collaboration, told the Hasht-e Subh Daily that a go-between had approached him with a work offer and asked him to cooperate.
The source confirmed that after receiving the Taliban intelligence member’s phone number, he made contact. “I called, he asked a few questions, then gave me his WhatsApp number and told me to reach out when convenient so we could discuss the details,” he said.
He added: “I met him in person a few times [the location and time have been omitted due to security concerns]. He told me to find a woman. He said age did not matter. He also told me to find attractive boys. When I asked what they were for, he said he wanted to be in contact with them and use them.”
The source continued: “He showed me a lot of photographs. I was genuinely shocked. I could see how they were setting traps for people. I was deeply disturbed. He told me that each of his people had brought him three or four girls and was paid for it. He said he did not want direct contact with the girls himself. People would bring them to him.”
He went on: “The person who had introduced me to the intelligence service was himself an intelligence member. After a few more meetings, he showed me pictures of boys and told me to find and refer good-looking boys like these. He said he would pay me well.”
A second source, who had also been introduced to Taliban intelligence members, said: “He would offer 300 to 500 Afghanis for every person referred. When I saw what was really going on, I told him I could not do it. I made excuses that I was unable to find anyone. Then I changed my phone numbers and moved to a different address. This is a clear injustice running beneath the surface of the city. Once someone has served their purpose, they are killed to keep their identity secret.”
One of the Taliban intelligence members implicated in this process is reportedly around 28 to 30 years old. He also had contact with transgender individuals, whom he sexually exploited. A source who interacted with him said, “He showed me photos of transgender people and said these were also available. But his primary focus was on attractive boys.”
Separately, sources say Taliban intelligence operatives are extorting citizens on a range of pretexts. Mobile phones are inspected at checkpoints, and individuals are detained over photos or chat messages found on their devices, with money demanded in exchange for release. Those who refuse to pay, sources say, are framed and imprisoned.
One source recounted: “I was on my way somewhere [location omitted due to security concerns]. At a checkpoint, he took my phone. He spotted a photo and asked who it was and who I was sending it to. He asked my name and my ethnicity. When I explained, he punched me several times, pocketed my phone, and told me to get out of the vehicle. I got out and pleaded with him. I genuinely had no money. He threatened to imprison me. I told him to go ahead; I had nothing. After a prolonged ordeal, he finally let me go.”
The same source added: “Something similar happened to a friend of mine. An intelligence member boarded the vehicle without my friend noticing. He took his phone and interrogated him. There was nothing on the device except ordinary chats and personal photos. He threatened to take him in and force a confession out of him, claiming he had been facilitating the referral of individuals for sexual purposes. Out of fear, my friend begged. His phone was confiscated, and he was forced to borrow 10,000 Afghanis to get it back. Had he not paid, a forced confession would have been extracted from him.”
Another source said, “They stopped me in the city and asked for my national ID card. It was on my phone, and I showed it to them. They insisted I produce the physical original and pulled me out of the vehicle. They told me to work for them, and they would let me go. I was frightened and agreed. They told me that whenever anyone spoke against the emirate, whether a man or a woman, I should report it, and they would pay me. I agreed just to get away from them. They took my number and released me. As soon as I got home, I changed my phone.”
The Hasht-e Subh Daily had previously reported that the Taliban exploit poverty and use intimidation to expand their espionage networks and systems of social control. That report found that arbitrary detentions, widespread interrogations, and cash offers in exchange for information form part of an organized effort to recruit informants from among ordinary citizens.
The findings showed that the Taliban use poverty as leverage, fear as a tool, and espionage as the only option they put on the table. Sources at the time confirmed that the Taliban had pressured citizens into spying by exploiting both financial desperation and security threats.
Taliban intelligence forces are also actively seeking teenage boys for sexual exploitation, having informally recruited individuals to help locate them. The Daily Mail, in its latest report, confirmed that the practice of “bacha bazi” persists among some Taliban members and officials.
According to the report, during the Taliban’s war against the previous government, dozens of boys were used, particularly in Uruzgan province, to lure and kill police commanders. The tactic proved effective on multiple occasions in 2016, the report states, resulting in the deaths of dozens of soldiers and police officers.
Sources had also previously confirmed to the Hasht-e Subh Daily that Taliban intelligence forces extort and blackmail citizens. According to them, the Taliban detain individuals on various charges and demand money and weapons in exchange for their release.
You can read the Persian version of this report here:
از ادعاهای سوءاستفاده جنسی تا همکاری استخباراتی؛ در استخبارات طالبان چه میگذرد؟
