A former Afghan military officer, who requested anonymity, has accused the Taliban of killing his brother, a police officer, two months after the group regained control of Afghanistan last November. According to the officer, his brother’s bullet-riddled body was discovered two weeks after he disappeared in the Obeh district of Herat province.
In a brief interview with Amu, the former officer detailed his 17-year career in the police force, serving in the provinces of Kandahar, Nimroz, Herat, and Farah. His last assignment was in Farah, but following the Taliban’s takeover of the country in August 2021, he initially placed his trust in the Taliban’s general amnesty and decided to stay in Afghanistan.
However, the officer alleges that the Taliban killed his brother just two months after the group returned to power. For security reasons, he declined to provide his brother’s name or photograph.
“I was afraid when Farah fell, so we moved to Herat,” the officer recounted. “But in Herat, they martyred my brother.” Fearing for his life, the officer fled to Iran in December 2021, using smugglers to cross the border. After eight months of working as a laborer in Iran, he was deported by Iranian authorities.
The former officer, who has three children—two daughters and a son—said he has been unemployed for months and is struggling to support his family. He urged for the protection of former military personnel in Afghanistan, highlighting the ongoing dangers they face under Taliban rule.
A report from the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) covering the first six months of this year documents nearly 100 cases of detention, 20 cases of torture, and nine cases of murder involving former officials and security forces, despite the Taliban’s declaration of amnesty. UNAMA noted that former officials and members of the security forces are still grappling with significant threats, including arbitrary detention, torture, mistreatment, and extrajudicial killings.
