As Taliban violence spikes, Afghanistan's rights situation deteriorates

Kabul [Afghanistan], August 10 : The evolving human rights situation in Afghanistan is indeed in a dire situation as reports indicate that the Taliban has re-imposed its radical version of the Shariat in the war-torn country, a European-based think tank said.
With the recent intensification of a conflict with the Afghan government, the Taliban continues to violate human rights unabatedly by killing civilians, destroying mosques and assaulting women.
"Reports indicate that the Taliban has re-imposed its radical version of the Shariat in the areas that it has brought under its control, women's rights in terms of schooling, dress, movement and jobs no longer exist, and mass murder of government officials and their family members, as well as of civilians, has become rampant," said the European Foundation for South Asian Studies (EFSAS).
According to EFSAS, Human Rights Watch (HRW), in two recent publications, highlighted the atrocities that were being committed by the Taliban, heady from its victory over the US, which if anything was encouraging the terrorist outfit to adopt a more radical posture on the ground.
In its July 23 report titled 'Afghanistan: Threats of Taliban Atrocities in Kandahar', revealed that after taking control of districts in Kandahar province the Taliban had detained hundreds of residents whom they accused of association with the government.
"Several of the detainees, including relatives of provincial government officials and members of the police and army, were killed in cold blood by Taliban squads," said Human Rights Watch (HRW), reported EFSAS.
It added that in a follow-up report on August 3, HRW informed that it had "obtained a list of 44 men from Spin Boldak, Kandahar, whom the Taliban have allegedly killed since July 16. All had registered with the Taliban before being summarily executed. Waheedullah, a police commander from Spin Boldak, had obtained a 'forgiveness' letter from the Taliban, but Taliban fighters took him from his house and executed him on August 2".
The Afghanistan Times reported on August 4 reported that the Taliban shot dead a young girl just because she was not wearing a veil. Husain Haqqani, a former Pakistani Ambassador to the US who is now the Director for South and Central Asia at the Hudson Institute believes that in areas where the Taliban has seized power, mainly in the country's more religiously conservative countryside, its conduct "is exactly what it was before. They have not changed at all ideologically".
The Afghan Interior Ministry informed that the Taliban have carried out terrorist attacks on 24 mosques since the beginning of the year. The ministry statement detailed that 30 religious scholars had been killed and 70 had been injured in these attacks. Further, mosques have also been significantly damaged in Taliban attacks.
Taliban continues to capture new areas and subsequently impose a regime that intends to take Afghanistan to old days under its rule, which means the non-existence of human values and even death punishment for petty crimes or violations of rules.
The Taliban attacked the Ahmad Shah Abdali Kandahar Airport and fired several rockets at parts of the airport on the morning of August 8. Flights were suspended following rocket attacks and later resumed late at night on the same day.
Toofan Omari, the head of Paktia Voice Radio and the 'Prosecutor for Combating Internal and External Security Crimes at the Bagram Prison Justice Center' was killed by the Taliban in the Dehsabz district of Kabul province, reported Khaama Press News Agency.