RASC News Agency: Reports from local sources in Badghis Province, western Afghanistan, indicate that more than half of the prisoners in this province are innocently imprisoned by the Taliban. A local source in Badghis, speaking on condition of anonymity, told RASC News Agency on Thursday, May 30, that many individuals inside the province’s prison are severely discontented with their circumstances and are demanding justice.
The source adds that the Taliban have detained a significant number of prisoners in Badghis solely because they did not cooperate with the group during the previous government. According to the source, many prisoners have served one year or more of their sentences, yet no court hearings have been held regarding their release or the duration of their imprisonment.
Meanwhile, several residents of Badghis claim that many people imprisoned by the Taliban in this province had never seen the inside of a jail before. Ghulam Moshfeq, a resident of Badghis, told RASC News Agency that the Taliban arrest people based on unfounded reports and transfer them to their prisons. He adds that many prisoners in Badghis have been incarcerated due to false reports, and there is no information about their fate.
He states that during the republic, one positive aspect for prisoners was that various representatives, from human rights to other organizations, worked on behalf of the prisoners and addressed their issues. However, now there is no such attention. Additionally, Qayum Zamani, a civil activist in Badghis, told RASC News Agency that the Taliban have also imprisoned some individuals as a means of revenge.
He asserts that a significant portion of different social strata in Badghis Province are held in Taliban prisons, with no verdicts issued for their cases. He adds that the Taliban’s actions towards the people are filled with animosity, and individuals should pay more attention to this matter.
Taliban prison officials in Badghis declined to comment on this issue. This follows previous reports that the Taliban imprison individuals on various pretexts across different provinces.
