KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – Sources in southern Afghanistan’s Helmand province say the body of a former security force member who was arrested by the Taliban six months ago has been handed over to his family.
A source told KabulNow that Allah Dad Badi Zai, a former local police commander in Helmand, was arrested by the Taliban’s intelligence directorate six months ago in the first security district of Lashkar Gah, the provincial capital. At the time, the Taliban’s intelligence directorate denied arresting the former security force member.
Three months ago, a source told KabulNow that Badi Zai was being subjected to severe torture in a Taliban prison.
However, the circumstances surrounding his death remain unclear.
According to the source, the Taliban’s provincial police command handed over his body to his family on Sunday. The source added that his funeral was held on Monday in Marjah district of Helmand province.
Despite the Taliban’s general amnesty announced after their return to power in August 2021, killings and reports of enforced disappearances and torture involving former members of Afghanistan’s security forces have continued.
In some cases, former security personnel have reportedly been arrested by Taliban authorities and their bodies later returned to their families, as in Badi Zai’s case. In other cases, former security force members have been killed under unclear circumstances by unidentified individuals.
The Taliban have repeatedly claimed that they remain committed to the general amnesty announced by their leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada, following the group’s takeover of Afghanistan.
In a report published in August 2023, the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) documented at least 800 human rights violations against former Afghan government officials and members of the former security forces between August 15, 2021, and June 30, 2023, despite the Taliban’s announcement of a general amnesty.
The violations included extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrests and detentions, enforced disappearances, torture, ill-treatment and threats. UNAMA documented at least 218 extrajudicial killings during the reporting period, noting that former army personnel, police officers, intelligence officials and members of the Afghan Local Police were among those targeted. In many cases, victims were detained by Taliban security forces before being killed; some were killed in custody, while others were taken to undisclosed locations and their bodies were later found or handed over to their families.
The report also recorded more than 424 cases of arbitrary arrest and detention and over 144 instances of torture and ill-treatment, including beatings with pipes and cables, threats and verbal abuse. UNAMA said investigations into the reported violations and efforts to hold those responsible accountable remained extremely limited, raising concerns about the implementation of the Taliban’s general amnesty.
The mission called on Taliban authorities to uphold the amnesty and conduct credible, transparent investigations into allegations of abuses against former government officials and security personnel.
