Afghanistan International: Sources claimed that the five perpetrators of the gangrape are members of Niloufar’s husband’s family. According to them, one of the perpetrators has been identified as “Mayel Agha” and is a member of the Taliban in Kapisa. Earlier, the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) in a report in December quoted some Taliban officials as saying they were imprisoning “women without a mahram” who were victims of violence. Click here to read more (external link).
Women arrested by Taliban for begging report rape and killings in Afghan jails
The Guardian (UK): Destitute Afghan women arrested for begging under draconian new Taliban laws have spoken of “brutal” rapes and beatings in detention. Over the past few months, many women said they had been targeted by Taliban officials and detained under anti-begging laws passed this year. While in prison, they claim they were subjected to sexual abuse, torture and forced labour, and witnessed children being beaten and abused. All the women said they had no other option to begging on the streets for money and food for their children after being unable to find paid work. Click here to read more (external link).
Related
Tolo News in Dari – November 29, 2024
Pakistan confirms arrests of Afghan nationals during Imran Khan protests
Khaama: Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, spokesperson for Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, announced that Afghan nationals had been arrested during protests by Imran Khan’s supporters in Islamabad. While Baloch did not specify the exact number of Afghan nationals arrested, this is not the first time Pakistani authorities have reported the detention of Afghans during protests in the country. Click here to read more (external link).
Bangladesh trumps Afghanistan in first match of U-19 Asia Cup
Ariana: Afghanistan’s under-19 national cricket team lost to Bangladesh in their first match in the ACC Men’s U19 Asia Cup 2024 on Friday in Dubai. The country’s under-19 cricket team will face Sri Lanka’s under-19 team next Sunday in its second game in this tournament. Click here to read more (external link).
Taliban confiscate 31 hectares of land in Kabul’s Sherpur area
Taliban militants (file photo)
Amu: Since assuming power in August 2021, the Taliban have made land confiscation a cornerstone of their governance, frequently reclaiming property they deem to belong to the state. While the Taliban defends the policy as a measure to restore order, it has faced criticism from individuals who claim rightful ownership of the seized lands and from local residents who view the actions as heavy-handed. The Sherpur neighborhood, a coveted area in Kabul, has long been a site of contention. Once a green zone, it has seen a surge in upscale development over the years, including luxury homes and government buildings, often at the expense of city planning regulations. Click here to read more (external link).
Tolo News in Dari – November 28, 2024
Moscow says it can’t develop ties with Kabul until IEA taken off terrorist list
Maria Zakharova
Ariana:.”We have repeatedly stated on previous occasions that Russia, like other world powers, intends to develop practical cooperation with Kabul on issues of mutual interest, including with the aim of fighting terrorist threats and drug trafficking that stem from the territory of Afghanistan,” Zakharova stated, TASS news agency reported. “However, it is obviously impossible to reach this aim without removing the terrorist tag from the Taliban movement (IEA),” she noted. Click here to read more (external link).
Related
UN report: Taliban have detained Afghan journalists more than 250 times
VOA News
November 27, 2024
By Jocelyn Mintz
Washington — Journalists in Afghanistan are forced to navigate an environment of “censorship and tight restrictions” under Taliban rule, the United Nations has said.
From the Taliban takeover on August 15, 2021, to September 30 of this year, the Taliban have detained journalists 256 times and 130 cases of torture and poor treatment have been documented, according to the report published Tuesday by the U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, or UNAMA.
The report documents the “arbitrary arrests, torture, and violence” that journalists have been subject to since 2021, according to Freshta Hemmati, of the Afghanistan Journalists Support Organization.
“They are working under the severe pressure of censorship and restrictions,” she told VOA.
The Taliban-led foreign ministry said that the figures in the report were “exaggerated” and that journalists are detained only for violations of law, the Reuters news agency reported.
The ministry cited crimes including defaming the government, false or baseless reports, and providing material to media outlets against the system, Reuters reported.
The UNAMA report found that journalists and media workers in Afghanistan often face “unclear rules on what they can and cannot report.” This leads to the high risk of arbitrary detention for what the Taliban deem as criticism.
Analysts who spoke with VOA said that the report reflects the media suppression in Afghanistan and is a hallmark of the Taliban rule.
“The aim of multiplying the arrests is to instill fear in the whole media community and to provoke self-censorship and submission,” Célia Mercier, head of Reporters Without Borders’ South Asia Desk, told VOA in an email.
Since the Taliban resumed power, they have imposed a strict interpretation of Islamic law. Their administration has not been officially recognized by any foreign government. Within three months of the takeover, around 40% of Afghan media outlets disappeared, according to the media watchdog group Reporters Without Borders, or RSF.
The takeover led to a large exodus of journalists. Those who remain risk being targeted, according to Beh Lih Yi, of the Committee to Protect Journalists, or CPJ.
CPJ has documented “cruel assaults and beatings” of journalists by Taliban forces. Often, journalists and their families choose to remain silent about a detention for fear of retribution.
“All these repressive measures of the Taliban are aimed at creating a chilling effect on the press and deterring journalists from continuing their reporting,” Beh told VOA in an email.
The restrictions have especially impacted women journalists in Afghanistan, Hemmati, of the Afghanistan Journalists Support Organization, told VOA. After the Taliban takeover, eight in 10 women journalists stopped working, according to RSF data.
The Taliban foreign ministry, in its response to the UNAMA report, said women were free to work if they met conditions, such as covering their faces and working separately from men.
Watchdogs have called on Afghan authorities to uphold press freedom by respecting the country’s media law, ratified nearly a decade ago. This law outlines the right to free expression in the country, with the goal of protecting journalists, according to the Afghanistan Journalists Center.
The UNAMA report called on the Taliban to improve conditions for media.
“We urge the de facto authorities to ensure the safety and security of all journalists and media workers as they carry out their tasks, and to fully recognize the importance of women working in the media sector,” Roza Otunbayeva, special representative of the secretary-general and head of UNAMA, said in the report.
Afghanistan is ranked at No. 178 out of 180 on the Press Freedom Index, where 1 signals the best environment. In 2021, before the Taliban takeover, the country ranked 122nd.
Sahar Azimi of VOA’s Afghan Service contributed to this report.
Despite Attacks By Resistance Fronts, Taliban Retains Military Dominance, Claims SIGAR
Afghanistan International: The Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) wrote in a report that attacks by opposition fronts do not pose a serious threat to the Taliban, and that the group has been able to maintain its military dominance in Afghanistan. He predicted that the Taliban would likely be able to maintain this advantage for at least the next 12 months. Click here to read more (external link).