Two Afghanistan journalists covering the women’s protests in Kabul were allegedly detained and severely beaten by Taliban security forces, Human Rights Watch said.
Taqi Daryabi and Nemat Naqdi, from the Kabul-based media outlet Etilaat-e Roz, were allegedly detained and attacked on Tuesday. The reporters had been covering protests by women in Kabul demanding an end to Taliban violations of the rights of women and girls. Etilaat-e Roz reported that Taliban authorities allegedly took the two men to a police station in Kabul, placed them in separate cells, and severely beat them with cables. Both men were released on September 8 and received medical care at a hospital for injuries to their backs and faces.
Zaki Daryabi, editor-in-chief of Etilaat-e Roz, said: “Two of my colleagues from who were detained by Taliban, beaten for four hours.” He added: “Under constant and brutal torture of the Taliban, the reporters lost their consciousness four times,” the Sky News reported. Human Rights Watch also reported that the Taliban authorities detained a Tolonews photojournalist, Wahid Ahmadi, on September 7, and released him the same day. They confiscated his camera and prevented other journalists from filming the protest. Women marched through the Afghan capital for the second day in a row on Saturday demanding their freedoms are guaranteed under the new Islamist regime.
The Taliban have pledged to protect women’s rights in accordance with Islamic law, but advocates fear a backslide after two decades in which female workers have joined previously all-male bastions including the media, judiciary, and politics.
The Taliban on Tuesday announced an interim Cabinet stacked with veterans of their hard-line rule, with no women or former political figures.
