Massacre of minorities in Afghanistan

Amnesty International has accused the Taliban of killing 13 Afghans from the Hazara minority on August 30, most of whom were soldiers and surrendered.

 According to Euronews, the human rights organization said in a report released today, Tuesday, October 5, that 11 of those killed were members of the Afghan National Security Forces and two others were civilians.
 A 17-year-old girl was among those killed, Amnesty International said in a report.  According to the human rights organization, the killings took place in a village called Kahour in Daikundi province in central Afghanistan.
 The assassination came as Taliban leaders sought to portray a different face than in the past after taking complete control of Afghanistan.
 Amnesty International has previously accused Taliban forces of torturing and killing nine members of Afghanistan's Hazara minority between July 4 and 6.

 Hazaras make up about 9 percent of Afghanistan's 36 million population.  They are mostly targeted because they are Shiite Muslims in a Sunni-majority country.
 According to Amnesty International, 34 former Afghan soldiers in the Khadir region sought to surrender after the Taliban took control of Daikundi province on 14 August.

 The cold-blooded executions of Hazaras are further evidence that the Taliban are committing the same atrocities they were notorious for during their previous rule in Afghanistan.
 Describing how Hazara citizens were killed, the human rights group wrote that 300 Taliban fighters entered a convoy near the village where security forces and their family members were stationed on August 30.
 As Afghan security forces tried to leave the area with their families, Taliban fighters opened fire on them, killing a 17-year-old girl named Masumeh, Amnesty International reported.
 According to the human rights organization, during the attack, a soldier fired at Taliban fighters, killing a Taliban's militant.

 Amnesty International continues its report, accusing Taliban forces of firing on families while they were fleeing.  According to the human rights organization, the Taliban dragged nine security forces to a nearby river and killed them after they surrendered.
 "The cold-blooded execution of Hazaras is further evidence that the Taliban are committing the same atrocities they were notorious for during their previous rule in Afghanistan," said Amnesty International President Agnes Kalamarta.
 Since its inception, the Taliban have reasserted the international community's concerns about the plight of its citizens, especially ethnic and religious minorities, by committing a series of assassinations as well as making decisions such as restricting women and forming a male-dominated government.

 Although key Taliban spokesmen have not yet responded to Amnesty International's report on the killing of Hazara citizens, Siddiqullah Abed, the Taliban-appointed police chief for Daikundi province, denied any killings by the group, saying a Taliban member had been killed in the attack.
 Despite this, the Taliban on Tuesday announced the arrest of 11 members of the ISIS group in Kabul, who are considered to be fierce rivals of the Taliban.

 

_{Source & Credit: Euronews}

^{Photo by Sohaib Ghyasi on Unsplash}