Taliban deny allegations of torturing civilians in Panjshir Valley

Kabul [Afghanistan], September 20 : Taliban on Monday denied allegations that the group is detaining and torturing civilians in Panjshir Valley and reiterated that the northern province is secure.
This comes as the Afghan resistance front alleged that the Taliban is arresting civilians and torturing them in a prison in Kapisa province, Tolo News reported.
Kabul fell to the Taliban on August 15, when internationally recognised former Afghan president Ashraf Ghani left the country and his government collapsed.
The seizure of power has forced thousands of Afghans to flee for fear of reprisals from the outfit.
UN Human Rights chief Michelle Bachelet last week expressed her concerns about reports of civilian casualties and human rights violations in Afghanistan's Panjshir province.
"I am worried about reports of civilian casualties and human rights violations as an outcome of the war in Panjshir and also am worried about the increasing hardship of living conditions there," Bachelet was quoted as saying by Tolo News.
In videos sent to the media, resistance front members claimed to have maintained a presence in Panjshir province. The videos depicted occasional conflicts between the two sides.
Saleh Mohammad Registani: "They are searching houses, arresting innocent people, carrying them to a prison in Kapisa. They kill innocent people and do not allow their relatives to bury the bodies."
In the meantime, several Panjshir residents claimed that the Taliban is using civilian houses as fighting positions.
Asadullah Wahdat, a Panjshir resident, said: "We ask the Islamic Emirate forces to evacuate residential areas and go where there are military forces of the former government."
Safora Amiri, another Panjshir resident, said: "The areas are full of military forces. The Taliban are using people's houses, this has caused civilians to evacuate their homes."
Highlighting the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Panjshir Valley, former Afghanistan Vice President Amrullah Saleh early this month had called on the UN to do its utmost to prevent the Taliban's onslaught into the resistance stronghold.
Raising an alarm over the situation in Panjshir, Saleh in a letter to the UN had said a large-scale humanitarian crisis is occurring across Panjshir province and three Andrabs districts in Baghlan province due to the economic blockade and telecommunication blackout by the Taliban.