RASC News Agency: Officials from the Taliban’s prison administration have revealed that they are currently detaining between 10,000 to 11,000 prisoners, including 1,000 women, across their facilities. During a Taliban accountability session held on Sunday, September 1st, these officials stated that the prisoners had been sentenced by the group’s courts. According to the Taliban’s prison administration, among these prisoners, there are also 800 to 900 children. Additionally, the officials noted that a further 10,000 to 12,000 individuals are being held in the group’s detention centers.
These revelations come amid reports over the past year detailing the deaths of prisoners due to torture within Taliban prisons. Furthermore, last year in May, some media outlets exposed instances of sexual assault, torture, and humiliation of female prisoners in certain Taliban-controlled facilities. The Taliban’s recent admission of detaining over 1,000 women stands in stark contrast to their previous assertions that no women were imprisoned under their regime. Just recently, the Taliban consistently claimed that no women were incarcerated in their prisons.
Reports indicate that 12,000 ethnic Tajiks from Panjshir alone are currently imprisoned by the Taliban, although the group continues to deceive the Afghanistani people. Given the Taliban’s history of lies and secrecy, it is likely that the actual number of women detained in their prisons is much higher than the 1,000 they admit to.
