According to a UN document, the Taliban have intensified their hunt for individuals who worked with NATO troops or the former Afghan government.
Taliban Threatens Different Families
In a recently published article in BBC News, according to the report, militants have been going door to door, looking for targets and threatening family members. Since taking control, the hard-line Islamist party has attempted to reassure Afghans by pledging "no vengeance."
The Taliban group has "priority lists" of people it wants to arrest, according to a secret study given by the UN's threat assessment experts and reviewed by several news outlets. It also threatens to murder or jail family members if they do not surrender.
Christian Nellemann, who heads the group behind the report, said, "There are a high number of individuals that are currently being targeted by the Taliban and the threat is crystal clear. It is in writing that, unless they give themselves in, the Taliban will arrest and prosecute, interrogate and punish family members on behalf of those individuals," according to a published article in ALJAZEERA.
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Taliban's First Officially Released a Statement
In a recently published news article in Federal Inquirer, during the Taliban's first formal news conference, spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid promised Afghans, including those who worked with the U.S. and partner troops, that they would be secure.
Mujahid said that all those who became masters against jihad will be pardoned, and this particular pardon is considered because they do not want the war to happen again and they do not want any elements of the war to stay. This is despite a report from the UN that anybody on the Taliban's "blacklist" was in grave danger and that mass killings were a possibility.
Mujahid added, "We are assuring the safety of all those who have worked with the United States and allied forces, whether as interpreters or any other field that they worked with them," according to a published report in the Epoch Times.
Protests Spread Across Afghanistan
At least two individuals were killed after the Taliban opened fire at a gathering in Asadabad, commemorating the country's independence day; the unfortunate event caused panic. It was unclear if the deaths were caused by the rush or by the gunshot. The Taliban did not respond to the event right away.
In Kabul, there were also sporadic flag-related demonstrations, with individuals, including women, marching through the streets past Taliban militants carrying the old flag and declaring, "Our flag represents our identity."
The U.S. State Department Released a Statement
State Department spokesperson Ned Price said that he had read a study compiled by at least one NGO. He is, however, not just able to corroborate those facts. He also said that whenever they come across a detail like this, they take it extremely seriously and do all possible ways to follow up on it.
Meanwhile, approximately 2,000 individuals were flown out of the U.S.-controlled airport in Afghanistan in the last 24 hours, according to the U.S. military officials speaking to reporters in Washington on Thursday. There are approximately 300 Americans among them. According to Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby, the majority of non-American passengers are Afghans who have been given special immigration visas and are on their way to military facilities in the United States.
