RASC News Agency: Amidst the Taliban’s assumption of control in Afghanistan, a substantial number of their commanders, embroiled in intense rivalry, have resorted to frequent matrimony. Certain instances have witnessed a notable upswing in marriages among specific group officials, ranging from two to five within the last two years. Recently, local sources in Badakhshan province divulged RASC News Agency that a Taliban commander, Mullah Tahir, alias Mullah Sabet, has, for the fifth time in two years, forcefully wedded underage girls leveraging his military might.
This Taliban member has coerced three young girls into compelled unions through familial pressure and coercion, marking his fourth marriage since the group’s ascendancy in Afghanistan. Another member, Qari Basir, situated in the Bagh-e Sherkat region of Kunduz province, had previously compelled two sisters to marry his brother in a single night. Post the Taliban’s dominion, certain officials and group members have engaged in multiple marriages, employing substantial dowries or coercing families.
As per recent reports on Afghanistan’s economic crisis by the United Nations, Afghanistani women and girls have been in a precarious human rights situation for over two years under Taliban rule. The organization has disclosed that over 80,000 girls in the country have been coerced into child marriages, predominantly orchestrated by Taliban commanders and members. The nation’s citizens denounce the licentious behavior of specific commanders and Taliban members, asserting, “Those who, for years, purported to engage in jihad and uphold the country’s national values, incited the youth to combat the security forces of the previous Afghanistan government. Cloaked in the defense of Islamic principles, they sacrificed thousands. Since taking control of Afghanistan, they have become enmeshed in moral decadence, routinely infringing upon the dignity of the populace in diverse provinces. Some have resorted to coercive means to forcibly marry underage girls.”
Previously, Shamsuddin Hemayoun, a Taliban commander overseeing Darqad district in Takhar province, held two opulent wedding celebrations within a week. Sources contend that dowry payments in this province can reach up to one million kabuli rupees (local currency), and those opting for a second or third marriage are mandated to provide higher dowry amounts. Additionally, findings indicate that Taliban authorities finance their wedding expenditures by selling surplus weapons seized from the previous Afghanistan government’s forces or accepting bribes.
Earlier, a Taliban military commander affiliated with Sirajuddin Haqqani, named Bilal Fateh Sangin, extravagantly celebrated his second wedding, acquiring properties in the city of Peshawar, Pakistan. Following the Taliban’s takeover, this military commander purportedly transferred around 1,200 various firearms of the previous Afghanistan security forces to North Waziristan and sold them. Forced and underage marriages have significantly surged under Taliban rule, accompanied by escalating economic challenges and restrictions on girls’ education. Social pressures, economic hardships, and the Taliban’s influence on families have compelled them to forcibly marry their young daughters to group members.
Last year, Mullah Hibatullah, the clandestine leader of the Taliban, instructed group members to refrain from extravagant expenses in second, third, and fourth marriages. However, it seems this directive has been largely disregarded by most members and officials of the group. Despite the call for restraint, the sustained interest of Taliban members in multiple marriages and forced unions with underage girls has prompted the Ministry Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice, a significant source of anti-women directives in Afghanistan, to once again instruct all its officials nationwide to prevent forced marriages of girls and women.