RASC News Agency: A coalition of human rights activists and advocates for social justice in Afghanistan has strongly condemned the Fatiha memorial ceremony held in Frankfurt, Germany, for Khalil-ur-Rahman Haqqani, the former Taliban Minister for Refugees and Repatriation. The activists described the event as a blatant insult to the memory of thousands of innocent victims in Afghanistan. In a statement released on Tuesday, December 17, the activists emphasized that holding such ceremonies in Europe legitimizes the atrocities committed by what they described as a “terrorist group.”
The statement read: “We, as a collective of human rights defenders, express our vehement objection to the permission granted for a memorial service honoring a senior member of the Haqqani terrorist network in Frankfurt. Such events undermine justice and dishonor the lives lost to the brutality of this group.” The activists further highlighted the Haqqani network’s record of orchestrating some of the bloodiest attacks in Afghanistan over the past two decades, holding them responsible for the massacre of thousands of innocent civilians. They urged the German government to take stricter measures to identify and prevent individuals associated with extremist groups from exploiting Germany’s democratic and free society. “Germany must not allow its values and freedoms to be manipulated for the benefit of terrorist organizations,” the statement warned. The activists underscored that failing to curb such gatherings could harm Germany’s domestic security and tarnish its international standing.
Khalil-ur-Rahman Haqqani, a high-ranking member of the Haqqani network and the Taliban’s former Minister of Refugees, was killed last week in a suicide attack at the ministry’s headquarters in Kabul. The Islamic State (ISIS) claimed responsibility for the bombing. The Haqqani network has claimed responsibility for hundreds of deadly suicide bombings and explosions across Afghanistan, resulting in the deaths of countless civilians. Despite this harrowing legacy, a faction of ethno-nationalists and religious extremists in Germany organized a memorial service for a figure directly complicit in these crimes. Such actions, the activists argue, further victimize the survivors and disrespect the blood of thousands who perished at the hands of this network.
