The U.S. Department of State has released its annual report on the human rights situation. The report highlights widespread violations of human rights and the suppression of civil and media freedoms in Afghanistan. The Taliban are accused in the report of widespread corruption and discrimination based on nationality, gender, and religion. Findings indicate that over the past two and a half years, the Taliban have been involved in human trafficking, child abuse, the use of children in armed conflicts, and child marriages. Moreover, the Taliban have conducted searches of non-Pashtun ethnic homes under the pretext of finding weapons, and have detained and tortured their opponents. The report also states that the Taliban have targeted ethnic and religious groups such as Hazaras, Shiites, Sikhs, and Hindus, forcibly displacing Hazaras from their areas in Urozgan Province. Regarding numerous cases of human rights violations by the Taliban as mentioned in this report, the United States has not decided to recognize the Taliban or any other entity as the official government of Afghanistan.
The U.S. State Department has emphasized that references to the Taliban in this report do not signify U.S. recognition of the Taliban as the government of Afghanistan.
According to this report, following orders banning women’s education and employment, the rights of women have significantly deteriorated, leading to increasing confinement to domestic roles. The report specifies that no Taliban directives regarding the ban on women’s education, employment, and work have changed. It notes that the Taliban have issued orders conflicting with the laws of the republic era and Afghanistan’s commitments to international conventions.
In its annual human rights report, the U.S. State Department has stated that credible reports of murder, severe physical abuse, harsh and life-threatening conditions for prisoners, unfair detentions, and abductions, as well as arbitrary and unlawful interference with privacy by the Taliban, have been documented. According to the report’s information, the Taliban judiciary has faced serious problems and has not respected the rights of the accused.
The report states that 90% of Taliban prisoners are political prisoners, and this group also accuses and seriously abuses the families of those it considers suspects.
The U.S. State Department has found in this report that the Taliban have caused extensive harm and death to non-combatants, disappearances, abductions, and physical abuse of the citizens of Afghanistan. The report explicitly states that the Taliban have recruited children in armed conflicts and subjected them to unlawful use. Serious restrictions on freedom of expression and the media, the detention of journalists and violence against them, censorship, restrictions on internet freedom, the prevention of civil and social liberties, and limitations on religious freedom are cited as serious violations of human rights by the Taliban against the people of Afghanistan.
According to the findings of the report, the Taliban have restricted the freedom of movement, residence, and right to leave of Afghan citizens, as well as imposed serious and irrational restrictions on citizens’ political participation and have deprived people of the ability to peacefully change the government through free and fair elections.
The U.S. State Department has received reports indicating serious administrative and financial corruption within the Taliban regime, which has imposed harsh restrictions on domestic and international organizations and has also subjected them to harassment and persecution. According to the findings of the report, widespread gender-based violence, including domestic violence, sexual violence against children, early and forced marriages, and creating fundamental barriers to accessing sexual and reproductive health services, have increased under the Taliban regime. This group, by establishing strict orders and regulations, has violated and restricted the rights of citizens of the country.
The findings of the report indicate that the Taliban have committed crimes against ethnic and religious groups such as Hazaras, Sikhs, Shiites, Salafis, Ahmadis, Hindus, and Afghan Christians, and have severely targeted these ethnic and religious groups.
The U.S. State Department has stated that under the Taliban regime, human trafficking and forced labor have increased, and laws that criminalize the behavior of homosexuals have been enforced, leading to violence against lesbians, transgender individuals, and LGBTQ+ communities in Afghanistan.
The findings of the report indicate widespread disregard for the rule of law and official immunity for those responsible for human rights abuses in the Taliban regime. According to reports, both the Taliban and ISIS have recruited and used child soldiers under the age of 12. Based on the report’s findings, foreign armed groups within the Taliban regime have threatened employees of health and non-governmental organizations and civilians, looted people’s property, and attacked their targets.
The U.S. State Department has referred to numerous reports from the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), which have highlighted extensive human rights violations and arbitrary deprivation of life in Afghanistan with political motivations.
The U.S. diplomatic apparatus, citing UNAMA reports, has confirmed that the Taliban have been responsible for enforced disappearances, unfair detentions, severe physical abuse, misconduct, and threats against civilian and military personnel of the previous government and members of their opposing factions. The report mentions UNAMA’s findings, stating that there are numerous credible reports that the Taliban have been responsible for attacks against personnel of the previous government and opponents of this group.
The U.S. State Department stated that there are credible reports that the Taliban have arbitrarily killed civilians in the provinces of Panjshir and Baghlan, and these actions by the Taliban are considered mass punishment against groups affiliated with the National Resistance Front (NRF) of Afghanistan. According to the U.S. State Department, UNAMA has documented at least 14 cases of enforced disappearance of officials from the previous government and members of the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan. The report also mentions Alia Azizi, the former head of the women’s prison in Herat Province, whose family has no information about her whereabouts and well-being so far.
The U.S. State Department’s report describes the dire conditions in Taliban prisons, stating: “Reports indicate that Pul-e-Charkhi prison in Kabul suffers from inadequate conditions, including overcrowding and insufficient access to water, sanitation, adequate and quality food, and medical services.” According to the report, the Taliban have confirmed that at least 120 individuals have lost their lives due to the cold and harsh conditions in the prison.
The U.S. State Department emphasized that the Taliban have continued widespread human rights violations and arbitrary and prolonged detentions, often concluding without due legal process. According to the report, almost all of the Taliban’s arrests and detentions have been unfair and illegal.
The report notes that the Taliban have disregarded judicial independence and replaced the majority of judges with their own, who have not received formal legal education within Afghanistan’s legal system. The U.S. State Department referred to reports by Margaret Satterthwaite, UN Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers, and Richard Bennett, UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Afghanistan.
In a joint report, these UN experts stated: “Currently, there are no standard procedures or constitutional law in Afghanistan. In criminal or civil matters where the police, judges, and lawyers are involved, the laws and regulations related to judicial procedure, judicial appointments, and fair trial procedures previously implemented by the former government have been suspended. This has resulted in a non-independent and entirely male-dominated system that enforces the Taliban’s version of Sharia law. It is a human rights catastrophe.”
The U.S. State Department has referenced reports of the forced expulsion of Hazaras from their native lands by the Taliban, stating that Hazara homes in Urozgan Province have been burned, their trees cut down, and their lands seized. The report, citing a prominent Hazara figure, mentions that at least 13 residents of one village in Urozgan were killed during the forced expulsion from their lands and homes.
Furthermore, the U.S. State Department’s report states that the Taliban have violated people’s privacy by forcibly entering homes and citizens’ offices to punish their political opponents, sometimes under the guise of weapon searches. The report indicates that the Taliban have detained at least 18 individuals in Kabul during house-to-house inspections on charges of association with the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan.
According to the annual Human Rights Report of the U.S. diplomatic apparatus, abductions by the Taliban and other unidentified actors have been documented by the United Nations. The report specifies that most of the abducted children have been taken for sexual exploitation.
Another aspect highlighted in the report is the exploitation of children in armed conflicts, primarily attributed to the Taliban. In 54 confirmed cases in 2022, children were utilized in armed conflicts, and in 22 additional instances, children were employed in support roles during the conflicts.
The U.S. State Department has confirmed in its report that Taliban commanders have engaged in “bacha bazi as known in Afghanistan,” or “child sexual exploitation” and this practice is on the rise among the Taliban. The report cites an example of a conflict between two Taliban commanders over a boy during a wedding ceremony in Badakhshan Province.
Another significant issue highlighted in this report is the suppression of freedom of speech and the media. According to the report, the Taliban have used force against the media, banned political discussions opposing them, and brutally suppressed civil society.
It is stated in this report that the demand for obtaining passports has increased, and obtaining passports without connections to Taliban authorities or paying bribes has become difficult.
The U.S. State Department, in its report, mentioned that the majority of the Taliban are Pashtuns, and this group prefers Pashtuns over other ethnicities within itself, raising concerns about the “Pashtunization” of Afghanistan.
Previously, Richard Bennett, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Afghanistan, also stated that the majority of senior Taliban officials are Pashtuns and have no interest in the participation of other ethnic groups and women in power.
The report highlights the financial corruption within the Taliban, indicating an increase in corruption in the security sector, judiciary, and revenue-generating institutions. Additionally, the Taliban’s exploitation of non-governmental organizations is cited as another instance of corruption within their regime. The Taliban extort money from the organizations and coerce them to recruit individuals affiliated with this group in the organizations.
The U.S. State Department stated in the report that the Taliban acknowledge bribery as a crime, yet there are reports that lower-level Taliban members attempt to manipulate the lists of food aid provided by organizations. Furthermore, investigations by some international human rights organizations have documented widespread human rights abuses and crimes by the Taliban, including allegations of executing individuals associated with the previous government, extrajudicial killings, and the disappearance of journalists, civil activists, and human rights defenders in Afghanistan.
In one case, referring to a report by the Hasht-e Subh Daily, the U.S. State Department cites women’s rights violations in Taliban prisons, where female inmates in Jawzjan, Faryab, and Samangan provinces suffer from humiliation, insults, physical abuse, and sexual assault. It is also stated that at least four female prisoners in Samangan have become severely ill due to repeated sexual assaults by the Taliban.
According to the U.S. State Department report, the Taliban have detained Tajik civilians in Takhar province on charges of associating with anti-Taliban elements, despite their ethnicity being the sole reason for their detention.
The U.S. State Department emphasizes that there are numerous reports from the provinces of Badakhshan, Balkh, Bamyan, Faryab, Kabul, Kapisa, Panjshir, and Parwan accusing the Taliban of discrimination against non-Pashtun ethnicities in resource allocation and administration.
According to the report, the Taliban, based on an official decree, have deprived girls above the sixth grade from attending school but allowed them to study without age restrictions in religious schools run by the group.
It is further stated that child abuse under the Taliban regime has significantly increased, with children being imprisoned alongside adults, and boys and girls are at risk of abuse, exploitation, or human trafficking. The report also mentions child marriage and forced marriages as part of Taliban policies.
You can read the Persian version of this report here:
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