Local sources have accused two Taliban officials of raping two women in separate incidents in Takhar and Badakhshan provinces.
In Takhar, sources said, Qari Ahmadullah, Taliban deputy district governor for Ashkamesh, sexually assaulted a 22-year-old woman who hailed from Baharak district.
One source told KabulNow Sunday on condition of anonymity that the Taliban official let the girl go after raping her 45 days ago in the district’s center.
Taliban authorities detained Ahmadullah, but he was released a week later after Takhar’s deputy governor intervened, prompting outrage from the victim’s family who said justice had not been delivered.
In a message to KabulNow, the Taliban’s security spokesperson condemned the incident without commenting further.
In Badakhshan, a Taliban commander, Qari Qadeer is accused of raping a woman, in a case which has sparked widespread outrage on social media after footage of the scene was leaked.
The Taliban commander, who oversaw cobalt ore mining in Karan-o-Manjan district, was dismissed from his post and briefly detained on charges of “moral corruption.”
Amanuddin Mansour, Taliban’s former governor for Badakhshan and commander of 217 Omari Corps said Qadeer was sentenced after being convicted of raping a woman and facilitating the escape of a girl into Iran.
Local sources, however, say that Qadeer was released shortly.
Taliban provincial officials have not commented.
Rights groups have raised concerns over serious violations of human rights under Taliban rule, particularly against women and girls, calling on the group to conduct independent and impartial investigations into allegations of rape by Taliban members and punish perpetrators as per international human rights law in fair trials.
