The Taliban escalate their brutal hunt for American allies

[Valin]

The Washington Examiner/Restorng America

 Beth Bailey
March 26, 2023

The  Taliban ’s January order that local leaders assemble kill lists of former Afghan military personnel has reinvigorated a long-standing reprisal campaign.

Journalist and human rights activist Natiq Malikzada has been at the forefront of efforts to document Taliban atrocities in Afghanistan , which he said have historically targeted former Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) personnel, and Tajiks from Panjshir, where the Taliban has faced armed opposition from the National Resistance Front. Over the past few months, Malikzada told me he has seen targeted killings and illegal detentions of ANDSF personnel increase. Though he says the international community has "chosen…to ignore these incidents," he told me of several.

US CONTINUES TO FAIL AFGHAN ALLIES NEEDING RESCUE

In late January, Malikzada said former special forces member Sattar Sidat was arrested by the Taliban. On Feb. 4, his dismembered body was found in Jowzjan province. The Washington Examiner was provided a photo of his body, but it is too graphic to publish.

In February, Malikzada said the Taliban made an announcement that they had buried the bodies of 144 addicts who had died from drug use. Among the bodies uncovered in the Kabul grave was that of Ghulam Rabani, a Panjshiri former ANDSF officer. The Taliban claimed Rabani died of illness, but his family says he was tortured while imprisoned.

(Snip)