RASC News Agency: Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, leader of Afghanistan’s Hezb-e-Islami party, has issued a strong condemnation of Taliban fighters involved in the deadly crackdown on unarmed civilians protesting in Khwaja Bahauddin district of Badakhshan province, calling for their immediate arrest and punishment under Islamic law. In a statement posted Monday, July 7, on his official X (formerly Twitter) account, Hekmatyar wrote: “If the reports about the killing and arrest of unarmed civilians in Badakhshan are true, those responsible both the perpetrators and the commanders who issued the orders must be apprehended and punished according to Sharia law.”
The veteran Islamist leader asserted that shooting unarmed individuals is “categorically forbidden in Islam,” and insisted that both the gunmen and their commanders must be subject to qisas the Islamic principle of retributive justice. Just days earlier, Hekmatyar had publicly reiterated that, based on religious rulings, “attacking an innocent Muslim who has neither taken up arms nor committed murder is an unequivocal sin that invites the wrath of God.” The protests in question erupted last week in the Khwaja Bahauddin district after Taliban forces began forcibly destroying local poppy fields a move that sparked anger among farmers and community elders. The Taliban’s response was swift and brutal: at least eight unarmed civilians, including one woman, were shot and killed by Taliban fighters, while 27 others were wounded, according to preliminary reports.
However, other sources reported even higher casualties, claiming that as many as 15 civilians may have been killed and nearly 40 others injured. Local residents told RASC that Taliban forces not only used lethal force but also detained at least 37 protesters, including several tribal elders, who were later airlifted by helicopter to Fayzabad, the provincial capital of Badakhshan. The incident has sparked nationwide outrage, particularly because it underscores the Taliban’s increasing reliance on violence to suppress dissent even in rural provinces where they once claimed to enjoy popular support. Hekmatyar’s condemnation is especially notable given his own controversial legacy and historical proximity to hardline Islamist factions. Once a fierce rival to other mujahideen commanders, Hekmatyar remained in Afghanistan after the Taliban seized power in August 2021, at a time when most former political leaders and jihad-era figures fled the country or went silent. Many observers had assumed that Hekmatyar would ally himself with the Taliban regime or even secure a position within its ranks.
Contrary to those expectations, however, he has emerged over the past four years as one of the few high-profile political figures inside Afghanistan to openly criticize the Taliban, often using religious rhetoric to challenge their legitimacy and denounce their abuses of power. Analysts say Hekmatyar’s latest statement may reflect growing discontent among Afghanistan’s traditional Islamist networks, who fear that Taliban authoritarianism has not only betrayed Islamic values but also alienated key constituencies especially in the rural north, where tribal elders and farming communities have historically played a stabilizing role.
While Taliban spokesmen have attempted to downplay the Badakhshan incident, international observers and human rights groups are calling for an independent investigation into the killings and arbitrary arrests. So far, the Taliban have refused to acknowledge wrongdoing or offer transparency regarding the fate of the detained protesters. As public frustration grows and calls for justice mount, the Khwaja Bahauddin massacre has become a stark symbol of the Taliban’s increasing intolerance for dissent, and of their failure to govern through consensus, dialogue, or basic accountability.
