RASC News Agency: Credible sources from Herat province in western Afghanistan have confirmed that some land grabbers and former government officials have seized and sold public lands. A reliable source in Herat province, speaking to the RASC news agency on Tuesday, Apr 16, stated that certain land grabbers in the Kohdashtan area of Herat city seized public lands during the Karzai and Ghani administrations and sold off half of these lands.
The source did not disclose the identity of the individuals or group in this report but mentioned that they forcibly seized dozens and even hundreds of acres of land from the local people in those areas and sold them. Additionally, the source noted that many of these land grabbers have used the proceeds from these lands to perform Hajj pilgrimage and are now regarded as pilgrims.
Furthermore, another source in Herat province informed the RASC news agency that the majority of the seized lands are located around Herat province, forcibly taken from the local population. According to the source, “During Ghani’s presidency in Herat province, some high-ranking government officials, leveraging their influence in the capital, seized numerous orchards and lands in the Shaidayee area of this province and are currently residing in Europe with the proceeds.”
The source stated that these officials collaborated with Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai’s team, the former president of the country, and received full support from the presidency. Moreover, the source added that the current owners of the seized lands have made repeated attempts to reclaim their lands, but there has been no satisfactory response from the Taliban’s judicial bodies. Additionally, some knowledgeable individuals in Herat province in western Afghanistan confirm that the majority of land grabbers were Pashtuns, and the Taliban pay less attention to their criminal cases.
A knowledgeable individual in Herat province, speaking to Rasak, stated that the majority of land grabbers of seized lands are Pashtuns, with half of them operating within the Taliban’s system in Afghanistan, while the other half has left Afghanistan for Europe. The informant added that currently, the Taliban are also targeting non-Pashtuns involved in land grabbing and land seizure cases.
Meanwhile, Majid Ghayoomi, a civil activist in Herat province, told RASC that there is no coercion or land grabbing in the Taliban government because the primary land grabbers are the Taliban themselves, who have seized Afghanistan. He stated that the Taliban have taken control of all the land in Afghanistan, leaving no room for further land grabs from the people. He further emphasized, “This epitomizes Afghanistan’s philosophy, where one group departs, and another group steps in to grab land, oppress, and harm people, leading society towards stagnation and failure.”
These statements come as central Taliban authorities in the Afghanistan capital are actively pursuing land grabbers and intend to disclose their names to the media.
