Taliban assures they will not target their enemies and women, but eyewitnesses say otherwise

Taliban assures they will not target their enemies and women, but eyewitnesses say otherwise

On Tuesday, the Taliban pledged to respect women's rights, forgive those who resisted their rule, and ensure security in Afghanistan in a publicity campaign aimed at convincing world powers and a frightened population that they have changed.

After a lightning offensive that took the Taliban without a fight into many cities of the country, the group tried to portray itself as more moderate than during the brutal rule in the late 1990s, writes AP. But many Afghans remain skeptical, and on Monday thousands of people headed to the airport hoping to escape the country.

Older generations still remember the Taliban's ultra-conservative views and laws, which included a near-total lack of rights for women , brutal punishments and public executions before they were driven out by US-led forces after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, during his first press conference on Tuesday, promised that the new government would respect women's rights, but within the framework of Islamic law, without specifying details. He also said the group wants private media to «remain independent» but emphasized that journalists «should not work against national values.»

In Afghanistan 🇦 🇫 women are quite literally being erased from public spaces. pic.twitter.com/J6HpDLF3t4

— Akshaya Kumar (@AkshayaSays) August 16, 2021

In addition, he assured that the Taliban do not seek revenge on those who worked with the previous government or with foreign authorities.

“We assure that no one will go to their homes to ask why they helped,” he asserted.

Although the Taliban have promised not to pursue their enemies, some in Kabul report that the militants have lists of people who collaborated with the previous authorities and are actively looking for them: just like journalists or women who led active social life as bloggers or activists.

Over the past hour, several Afghan female friends in Kabul told me the Taliban are in their neighborhoods, going house to house, looking for women in govt and media, making lists. One sent me a photo from her living room showing armed Talibs outside. "I love you" she wrote. 💔

— Amie Ferris-Rotman (@Amie_FR) August 16, 2021

“Just an hour ago I got news from Kabul that they were going door to door looking for women who were activists, women who were bloggers, YouTubers, any women who played a role in the development of civil society in Afghanistan,” the BBC said. Homira Rezaee, who grew up in Afghanistan.

«They go door to door targeting these women and mark the doors with hot pink or bright paint to remember that 'this house must be returned and something do it.”

One of the first female mayors of Afghanistan said on Sunday that now she can only wait for death at the hands of the Taliban.

“I am sitting here and waiting for them to come. There is no one to help me or my family. <…> They will come after people like me and kill them. — says Zarifa Gafari — I can't leave my family. And besides, where would I go?”

Despite the deplorable situation, Ghafari, 27, Afghanistan's youngest mayor and the first woman to hold a post in Maidan Shar in Wardak province, believes that there is still hope.

“Young people know what is happening. They have social networks. They communicate. I think that they will continue to fight for progress and our rights. I believe that this country has a future.”

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