KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – Taliban intelligence agents have detained two former security personnel in Panjshir province, local sources said, highlighting the group’s ongoing crackdown on ex-security forces despite a declared general amnesty.
The individuals, identified as Mohammad Sohrab and Zakir, were arrested in the Dara district of Panjshir on Friday, June 19, according to sources who spoke to KabulNow.
According to the sources, Mohammad Sohrab previously served as chief of the National Directorate of Security (NDS) in Dara district during the republic government, while Zakir was a member of the Afghan National Army deployed in northern Afghanistan.
Sources said Sohrab had already been detained for one day five days earlier and was re-arrested on Friday while traveling toward Kabul.
The motive behind their detention remains unknown, and Taliban authorities have not yet commented.
According to the sources, both individuals had been living as ordinary civilians since the Taliban’s return to power in 2021, with no known affiliation to any political or armed opposition groups.
The detentions underscore continued concerns about the treatment of former government officials and members of the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF). Although the Taliban announced a general amnesty for former security personnel and officials after taking control, reports of arbitrary arrests, detentions, and other abuses have persisted.
In his latest quarterly report to the UN Security Council, the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres documented at least five killings, 20 cases of arbitrary arrests and detentions, and eight cases of torture involving former Afghan military personnel and officials between Jan. 26 and March 31.
The United Nations and international human rights organizations have repeatedly urged the Taliban to ensure accountability, uphold the declared amnesty, and protect the rights and safety of all Afghan citizens, including former security personnel.
