Taliban “skin alive” two ANA men in Baghlan

PUL-I-KHUMRI (SW): The Taliban attacked Dahan-e-Ghori district in Baghlan on Wednesday and captured several check posts before reportedly skinning alive two Afghan National Army (ANA) men and then shooting them dead.

“Taliban have captured us, they have skinned alive one of Commander Husain’s men and now it is my turn, forgive me”, one of the captive officers said on mobile phone as he contacted his cousin moments before the incident.

Baig Mohammad and Commander Husain, the in-charge of the check posts were not at the posts when the militants attacked. They told Salam Watandar that the Taliban through tribal elders have warned them that if they did not surrender in 10 days, they would go through similar fate as the two ANA men. They said that the Taliban have intensified their attacks against them, and they have no choice but to surrender to the militants.

Shah Zaman Zamani and Rahmuddin, two family members of the deceased men, said that their officers did not surrender to the insurgents, and after they were captured by the rebels, they were skinned alive and shot dead. They said that 7 security personnel have been killed and 5 more have been injured during the fighting so far.

Nooria Hamid, a member at Baghlan provincial council, confirmed the incident and accused local government of inability. “The government cannot do anything, and we better pick-up guns and join our security forces to defend our country”, she said. She said that the government is not capable to suppress the militants, and the government’s choppers instead of targeting the enemy, continue to fire ‘blindly’.

Abdul Satar Barez, the governor of Baghlan, confirmed the intense fighting in the province, and said that reinforcement troops have been dispatched to the area to begin mop-up operation. He said that he did not know anything about the claimed about militants skinning the ANA men alive.

The Taliban have closed the routes in Dehana-e-Ghori leading to the provincial center for the past four months, and the district has been besieged by the militants. Earlier, a number of besieged security forces in the district told Salam Watandar that they lacked equipment, and have warned that the district might fall to the militants if reinforcement troops are not dispatched.

ENDS