KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – Afghanistan’s Ismaili Shia community is enduring systematic persecution under the Taliban, including forced conversions, restrictions on religious practices, and widespread discrimination that could constitute crimes against humanity, according to a new report by UK-based human rights group Rawadari.
The report, The Human Rights Situation of Ismaili Shias in Afghanistan, is based on interviews with 25 victims, survivors, family members, civil society activists, and human rights defenders both inside and outside Afghanistan. It details Taliban policies targeting the community’s religious and cultural identity and their exclusion from political, administrative, and social participation over the past four years.
Rawadari says discrimination against Ismailis, while historically present in Afghanistan, has become more organised under the Taliban and now affects every aspect of life. Children have been forced into Taliban-run Sunni madrassas, and families resisting these schools in parts of Badakhshan faced fines, threats, torture, and the burning of homes and property.
The report also documents coercion to abandon the Ismaili faith, including public accusations of apostasy, intimidation, death threats, detention, and torture. Some community members were forced to convert to Sunni Islam, while in several areas, Ismaili religious practices were restricted or blocked, and residents were compelled to participate in ceremonies of other Islamic sects.
Rawadari also documents extrajudicial killings of prominent Ismaili figures and community members, reporting at least four deaths in recent years. Such actions have created widespread fear and prompted some families to flee Afghanistan.
The investigation highlights the removal of Ismailis from positions of authority and decision-making in Taliban-controlled institutions. Many were dismissed from government posts because of their faith, while others concealed or changed their religion to retain employment. Six interviewees said they personally lost their jobs, while 16 others knew people dismissed for the same reason.
Fear of openly identifying as Ismaili has spread across the community. Rawadari cited cases of hate speech, public accusations of apostasy, and verbal abuse by Taliban officials and religious preachers. Discrimination also extends to daily life: restrictions on marriage with Sunnis, annulled unions, and the refusal of some Afghans to eat food prepared by Ismailis.
The report says threats, harassment, and insecurity have forced many Ismaili families to leave their homes, particularly in Badakhshan and Baghlan provinces. It documents cases of local Taliban commanders seizing land and gold mines. Fifteen interviewees said families were displaced due to discrimination and violence; three personally fled due to harassment and forced conversion, and 12 reported property seizures without legal process.
Ismaili women face compounded discrimination based on both gender and religion. They are denied access to their own religious education centers, and Taliban courts often reject their testimony, applying Hanafi jurisprudence. Eighteen interviewees said Ismaili women experienced more severe and layered discrimination than other women in Afghanistan.
The report concludes that the scale and pattern of abuses indicate systematic persecution that could meet the legal threshold for crimes against humanity. Rawadari urged the Taliban to end the violations, called on the UN and the international community to intervene, and encouraged human rights groups and media to document ongoing abuses.
UN experts and international rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, have previously reported widespread discrimination against religious minorities under Taliban rule. Earlier this year, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom warned that the Taliban had effectively eradicated religious freedom and recommended urgent measures, including targeted sanctions against leaders linked to abuses.
Taliban authorities have not yet responded to Rawadari’s report but have previously dismissed allegations of discrimination against religious minorities and women as “propaganda.”
