RASC News Agency: In a disturbing continuation of Taliban impunity and militarized lawlessness on Afghanistan’s roads, two children were critically injured in separate vehicular collisions involving Taliban-operated vehicles in Panjshir province. Both incidents occurred on the same day, raising alarm over the group’s routine disregard for traffic safety and civilian well-being especially in residential areas. Local sources confirmed that the first incident took place in Onaba district, where a Taliban military vehicle, reportedly speeding and maneuvering recklessly, veered off the main road and violently struck a seven-year-old child. The impact caused severe head injuries. The child was rushed to Sheikh Zayed Hospital in Kabul, where doctors describe his condition as life-threatening. He remains in intensive care.
Later that same day, another child a schoolboy aged eight was struck by a Taliban Toyota Hilux vehicle in the center of Bazarak, Panjshir’s provincial capital. According to eyewitness accounts, the vehicle was moving at excessive speed, with no regard for traffic norms or pedestrian safety. The boy suffered significant trauma to his legs and spine and was immediately transferred to Onaba District Hospital. His current medical status remains unclear. These incidents are the latest in a series of civilian injuries and deaths attributed to Taliban vehicle negligence, a pattern that has become tragically normalized under the group’s de facto rule. Despite widespread documentation of such cases across multiple provinces, the Taliban have consistently failed to acknowledge responsibility or implement measures to prevent further harm.
Residents in Panjshir have condemned the Taliban’s continued indifference to civilian safety. “They drive through our towns with the arrogance of conquerors, not caretakers,” one resident told RASC News. “There is no accountability, no rules only fear. Our children are being crushed under the wheels of their impunity.” Under Taliban control, Afghanistan has witnessed the collapse of basic governance mechanisms, including traffic enforcement and civilian protections. Roads once monitored by civilian police are now patrolled by armed Taliban convoys, who operate without oversight, training, or legal consequences. Civil society advocates warn that without the restoration of rule of law and independent institutions, such incidents will persist and likely increase. “These are not accidents; they are the outcome of a militarized regime that does not view civilians, especially children, as lives worth protecting,” said a Kabul-based rights activist.
Calls are growing for international human rights organizations to intervene and monitor civilian casualties caused by Taliban forces, including non-combat incidents like vehicular assaults. Yet, with Taliban authorities refusing transparency and restricting independent reporting, many fear justice will remain elusive. For now, grieving families and anxious communities in Panjshir and across Afghanistan continue to bear the brunt of a regime that not only fails to protect its people, but actively endangers them through its own reckless operations.
