Local sources in Nimroz say the Taliban started house-to-house searches Sunday morning in Zaranj city, the center of Nimroz province.
Karim, a resident of Zaranj, said the Taliban started house-to-house searches at 6 am on Sunday in PD1 of Zaranj city.
“It was dark at 6 in the morning, there was a knock on the gate, I opened it and a group of Taliban including 15 men and 3 women with their faces covered entered our house without permission and searched all the rooms in the house,” he said
According to the Taliban sources, all the alleys in this area were blocked by Taliban vehicles and intelligence members, and the area was cordoned off.
Fariba, another resident of Zaranj, said the Taliban started searches in the second district at 7 a.m. and carefully inspected every house for half an hour.
He said: “The Taliban searched inside boxes, storage, cupboards, kitchen utensils and even under the carpets. They told us that they are looking for weapons and ammunition and have nothing to do with us.”
Fariba said three of the women who were with them, “ransacked the house and messed up all the furniture” and searched women and children.
She added that the group that had come to their area consisted of 20 men and 3 women, who said they were looking for weapons and people affiliated with opposition groups.
Over the past few months, the Taliban conducted house-to-house searches in the cities of Kabul, Herat and Mazar-e-Sharif.
In the past there have been complaints of mistreatment by the Taliban during such searches and the absence of female forces.
