Taliban Says Killed 13 Hazara Shiites In Afghanistan, Including 17-Year-Old Girl

Illustration of Taliban soldiers. (Antara/Reuters/Stringer HP/sa/pri)

JAKARTA - Taliban forces have unlawfully killed 13 Hazara Shiites, including nine surrendered former government soldiers and a 17-year-old girl in Daykundi province, Afghanistan on August 30, according to a new investigation by Amnesty International.

Since the withdrawal of US troops and the NATO alliance from Afghanistan, followed by the takeover by the Taliban, there have been fears that long-persecuted ethnic and religious minorities, such as the Shia Hazara ethnic minority, will be targeted because they were under previous Taliban rule.

Eleven of the victims of the August 30 killings were former members of the Afghan National Defense Security Forces, and two were civilians, Amnesty reported. The killings are said to have taken place in Kahor Village, Khidir District, Daykundi Province.

"The Taliban unlawfully executed nine Afghan national defense security forces after their surrender, killings that appear to constitute war crimes", Amnesty International said as quoting by CNN, October 5.

"Two civilians died as they attempted to flee the area, including a 17-year-old girl who was shot when the Taliban opened fire on the crowd", Amnesty said, citing eyewitness testimony gathered as part of its investigation.

Amnesty said it had verified the images and video evidence recorded after the incident, putting events in a timeline, starting with the Taliban taking control of Daykundi province on August 14.

CNN was unable to independently verify the findings of the investigation and has reached out to the Taliban for comment.

"This cold-blooded execution is further evidence that the Taliban committed the same horrific abuses they committed during their previous administration in Afghanistan", the banda explained.

They repeatedly violated the rights of those they saw as their enemies, even killing those who had surrendered", Amnesty International Secretary-General, Agnes Callamard, said in a news release.

"The Taliban say they did not target former government employees before, but this killing contradicts those claims", Callamard said.