Taliban tortured to death a 50-year-old man over a land dispute in Jowzjan’s Darzab district on Thursday night, local sources said.
The victim, identified as Khal Mohammad Bai, was an ethnic elder in Darzab’s Shirmangu village. A video clip obtained by KabulNow shows signs of torture and bruises on Khal Mohammad Bai’s body.
A local source revealed that the Taliban member who allegedly killed Khal Mohammad Bai was the son of Ahmed Rais with whom the victim had a land dispute. According to the source, Bai was tortured after a heated verbal exchange with Ahmed Rais’s son.
Ahmed Rais is also accused of coercion and is allegedly exploiting his son’s position in the Taliban government for personal gain.
The Taliban security command in Jowzjan province admits the victim was murdered, but claims that he was stabbed to death by unknown persons.
The group’s local spokesperson Abdul Sattar Halimi said that they have started an investigation and four individuals have been arrested in connection with the case so far.
The Taliban have been previously accused of committing acts of violence, torture, and murder, which the group’s spokespersons have consistently denied.
A recent human rights report by Amnesty International revealed widespread extrajudicial killings of people linked to the previous government and those who do not adhere to the Taliban’s restrictions during the group’s rule in Afghanistan.
According to the organization, there is widespread impunity for gross human rights violations under the Taliban rule, including extrajudicial executions, with no proper or transparent investigations being conducted.
