As the reports of violence perpetrated by the Taliban makes the headline, the United States and the British embassies in Kabul said the Taliban may have committed war crimes in southern Afghanistan by carrying out revenge murders of civilians.
The Islamic jihadi insurgents, on the other hand, have disputed the charge. Suhail Shaheen, a Taliban negotiation team member based in Doha, told Reuters that the accusations were “baseless reports.”
The US mission tweeted a statement accusing the Taliban of killing dozens of civilians in the area of Spin Boldak and said, “In Spin Boldak, Kandahar, the Taliban massacred dozens of civilians in revenge killings.”
(1/2) In Spin Boldak, Kandahar, the Taliban massacred dozens of civilians in revenge killings. These murders could constitute war crimes; they must be investigated & those Taliban fighters or commanders responsible held accountable. 🇬🇧 + 🇺🇸 urge #CeasefireNow. pic.twitter.com/gkIzeMgQ32
— U.S. Embassy Kabul (@USEmbassyKabul) August 2, 2021
“These murders could constitute war crimes; they must be investigated & those Taliban fighters or commanders responsible held accountable,” the US embassy tweeted.
In a second tweet, it added: “The Taliban’s leadership must be held responsible for the crimes of their fighters. If you cannot control your fighters now, you have no business in governance later.”
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, briefing reporters on Monday ( August ) said a new US refugee program for US-affiliated Afghans, called reports of the Taliban committing atrocities “deeply disturbing and totally unacceptable.”
#Terrorists Taliban brutally beat a #child in Sherin-Tagab district of Faryab province because his father being an Afghan soldier.
The #Taliban kill innocent civilians and looting people’s properties in areas under their control everyday. pic.twitter.com/LyhPzflBM8— Fawad Aman (@FawadAman2) August 2, 2021
State Department spokesman Ned Price said the Taliban are responsible for most of the “outrageous and atrocious acts of violence and the world will not accept a government in Afghanistan that doesn’t respect basic human rights.”
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