FAIZABAD (SW) – Sakina (pseudonym) lives in an area recently falling to the Taliban in Badakhshan. Her husband works in one of the neighboring countries and sends home monthly expenses.
Sakina told Salam Watandar that after the Taliban came to the area, she could not go to the market without a male companion to buy the items of daily need or visit a health center.
“My husband is in Iran and I live alone with a few children and now I am afraid and can’t go out of the house, I can’t go to the market, clinic. At the moment, one of my child is sick. But, since I don’t have a male companion at home, I can’t get out of the house to get medicine for the child”, she said.
Sakina is not the only one complaining about this issue.
Residents of different parts of Badakhshan told Salam Watandar that after the Taliban came here, the living conditions have drastically changed, government institutions are paralyzed and no services have been provided to the people by the insurgents.
Sayed Noorullah, another resident of Badakhshan, said the group has set different terms, conditions and restrictions for all residents.
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Commenting on this, Nusratullah, a civil society activist in Badakhshan, confirmed that the Taliban regime has begun to impose grim restrictions. He said government agencies were paralyzed and people were not feeling well. “After the Taliban took control of the districts of Badakhshan, unfortunately, the business community is facing difficulties and the Taliban have imposed severe restrictions on women and the common people as well in these areas.”
The Taliban have also warned the residents those whose family members are working with the government against coming out of their homes.
Officials from the local administration in Badakhshan were not available to comment on the situation in the area under the Taliban.
One of the human rights activists also confirmed the Taliban have even forced poor Badakhshan residents to cook meal for dozens of their fighters.
Meanwhile, Zabihullah Mujahid, one of the Taliban’s spokespersons, dismissed the allegations as baseless and said there were no restrictions on women. The Taliban spokesman added that the situation in some districts of Badakhshan was still militarized and some of the public entities were inactive and have been re-established as normal.
“There are no restrictions anywhere and the people in Badakhshan are Muslims and in the past Muslim women used to walk around wearing hijab”, he said while dubbing the complaints as a baseless propaganda.
With the exception of Karan and Manjan, have fallen to the Taliban.
ENDS
