KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – Local sources in Afghanistan’s Panjshir province report that the Taliban have detained a school teacher after he shared images showing the group burning a school in the region.
The teacher, identified as Abdul Basir Sangi, was detained on Wednesday in the Sangi Khan area of Abshar district, according to the sources.
The local Taliban authorities have not commented on the arrest. Sources say the arrest came after Sangi published images of a school set on fire by Taliban members in the Parangal area of Abshar district last week for reasons that remain unclear.
According to the sources, the incident is the latest in a series of school burnings by the Taliban in the province over the past years. Schools previously targeted include Bibi Hawa Girls’ High School in Panjshir city, Mirza Abdul Ghafoor Yaqubi High School in Paryan district, and Dasht-e-Riyot Girls’ High School in Hesa-1 district.
Earlier this month, the Taliban also closed several literacy centers for women across the province and dismissed many teachers running the programs, further limiting educational opportunities.
Panjshir, north of Kabul, is a stronghold for two anti-Taliban groups: The National Resistance Front (NRF) and the Afghanistan Freedom Front (AFF). The province has seen harsh collective punishments by the Taliban over the past four years, with hundreds of residents detained, tortured, or killed, often accused of supporting armed groups or possessing weapons.
Human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, say the Taliban’s actions in Panjshir amount to war crimes, citing widespread abuses such as arbitrary detentions and restrictions on civilians.
