Local sources in northeastern Panjshir province have reported that Taliban intelligence agents have arrested six people, including a school principal, in Rukha district of the province.
Sources told KabulNow that the Taliban arrested the individuals on Friday evening, and their fate is still unknown.
The arrests follow a Friday prayer speech in Rukha district by Mawlawi Seyed Padshah, in which he called the people of Panjshir irreligious and insulted them for not supporting the Taliban during the two rounds of their government in Afghanistan.
The sources said that Padshah, who is a relative of the Taliban governor in Panjshir province, was removed from the pulpit by the people after his remarks angered them. Following this incident, Taliban intelligence agents arrested Mohammad Ayuob Bakhshi, the principal of Rukha High School, along with five other civilians.
The local Taliban authorities in Panjshir have not commented on the arrest of these individuals yet.
The arrests are the latest in a series of crackdowns by the Taliban on residents of Panjshir province. Since the Taliban took over Afghanistan in August 2021, there have been numerous reports of arbitrary arrests, torture, and killings of civilians in the province.
Human rights reports suggest that the Taliban’s widespread retaliation against residents of Panjshir and the violation of gross human rights amount to war crimes.
