- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Dec 24, 2020
- Event Description
On 24 December, in Deh Naw village, Hesa-i-Awal Kohistan district, Kapisa province, gunmen shot and killed civil society activist Freshta Kohistani. Civil society and media indicated that Kohistani had previously posted on her social media account about threats received. There was no claim of responsibility for the attack. On 28 December, security officials reported having arrested suspects involved in the attack.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Death, Killing, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to life
- HRD
- Community-based HRD, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Unknown
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Unknown
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Date added
- Mar 16, 2021
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Jul 1, 2020
- Event Description
On 1 July, in Farah city, gunmen shot and killed the spokesperson of the Farah Civil Society Network Hamidullah Rahmani. He was also a teacher, an elder and the head of the Teachers’ Association. He had reportedly previously asked the National Directorate of Security to provide security for him. There was no claim of responsibility for the attack.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Death, Killing, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to life
- HRD
- NGO staff
- Perpetrator-State
- Unknown
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Unknown
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Date added
- Mar 12, 2021
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- May 21, 2020
- Event Description
On 21 May, in Qalat city, gunmen shot and injured human rights defender Mohammad Ibrahim Ebrat. Ebrat, the coordinator for Zabul of the Civil Society Joint Working Group, died of his injuries on 28 May. Before the attack, reportedly Ebrat had received death threats from the Taliban, who urged him to cease his human rights work. There was no claim of responsibility for the attack.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Death, Killing, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to life
- HRD
- NGO staff
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Suspected non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Date added
- Mar 12, 2021
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Dec 21, 2020
- Event Description
Afghan authorities must thoroughly investigate the killing of journalist Rahmatullah Nikzad and do everything in their power to ensure that members of the press can work safely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
This evening, in the central Afghan city of Ghazni, unidentified gunmen shot Nikzad, a freelance photojournalist who contributed to The Associated Press and Al-Jazeera, three times in the chest while he was leaving his home to go to a local mosque, according to the AP, Al-Jazeera, and other news reports. He was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead, according to those reports.
Nikzad was also the head of the Ghazni Journalists’ Union, which represented press workers in Ghazni province, those reports said.
“Rahmatullah Nikzad’s crucial work documenting the ongoing conflict in Afghanistan has been brought to a tragic end by this brutal killing,” said Aliya Iftikhar, CPJ’s senior Asia researcher. “The recent spate of killings of journalists in Afghanistan is unacceptable and the Afghan government must redouble efforts to ensure justice and safety for members of the media.”
Nikzad had received threats from different sources over the years, and had notified local and national officials about them, Abdul Mujeeb Khalvatgar, director of the Afghan press freedom organization NAI, told CPJ in a phone interview.
Khalvatgar said that many of the threats came from local Taliban members upset with Nikzad’s work for international outlets, as well as his work with the journalist union.
Khalvatgar and Najib Sharifi, director of the Afghan Journalist Safety Committee, another local press freedom organization, who also spoke to CPJ via phone, both said they believed Nikzad was killed because of his work.
The Taliban, which controls large parts of Ghazni province, denied responsibility for the attack, according to those news reports.
Ghazni Police Chief Khalid Wardak and a spokesperson for the president’s office did not immediately respond to CPJ’s requests for comment sent via messaging app.
In November, reporter Elyas Dayee was killed in a bomb attack in Helmand province, and on December 10, journalist Malalai Maiwand was shot and killed in Nangarhar province, as CPJ documented at the time.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Death, Intimidation and Threats, Killing, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to life
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Suspected non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Date added
- Jan 8, 2021
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Dec 10, 2020
- Event Description
Malala Maiwand, 25, a female TV anchor for Enkaas TV and Radio, was killed by gunmen in a targeted attack in Nangarhar province in eastern Afghanistan on December 10. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its Afghanistan affiliate, the Afghan Independent Journalists’ Association (AIJA) condemn the brutal killing and urge authorities to take swift and meaningful action to ensure the safety of journalists in Afghanistan.
The assailants opened fire on Malala Maiwand's car as she left to travel to work in Jalalabad from her home in eastern Nangarhar province. Both Malala and her driver, Mohammad Tahir, were killed. Following the shooting, the assailants fled the scene. The Islamic State (IS) has since claimed responsibility for the shooting, terming her a “pro-regime” journalist. Nangarhar is well known for IS militant activity and the group claimed responsibility for most of the recent attacks on civilians in the area.
Tragically, Malala’s murder happened on the last day of the UN global annual 16 days of activism campaign against violence against women.Known as a women’s rights activist, Malala had previously delivered a speech about the challenges for female journalists in Afghanistan. Her mother, who was also a women’s right activist, was shot dead by unknown assailants five years ago.
The targeted killing is the first since the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the European Union (EU) issued a joint statement on December 7 condemning attacks on journalists and religious leaders.
Malala is the fourth Journalist to be killed in Afghanistan in 2020. On November 12, Elias Daei, 33-year-old correspondent for US-funded Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) was killed in an targeted explosion in Helmand province. Former television presenter Yama Siawash was killed in the explosion in Makrorayan-e-Char area of Kabul on November 7. Earlier in the year on May 30, Khurshid TV journalist Zamir Amiri was killed when a roadside bomb exploded targeting the bus carrying Khurshid TV station employees. According to the IFJ South Asia Press Freedom Report, six journalists were killed in Afghanistan in 2019.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Death, Killing, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to life
- HRD
- Media Worker, WHRD
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Extremist group
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Date added
- Jan 8, 2021
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Nov 11, 2020
- Event Description
An improvised explosive device (IED) attached to the car of Elyas Dayee, a reporter with Azadi Radio, exploded and killed him on November 11, 2020 in Afghanistan’s Helmand Province, Human Rights Watch said today.
Although the Taliban have not issued any statement about the attack, Dayee had recently told Human Rights Watch that he had received numerous death threats warning him to stop his reporting on Taliban military operations. The Taliban frequently uses IEDs to carry out targeted attacks on civilians, which are war crimes.
“The killing of Elyas Dayee simply for doing his job sends a chilling message to the Afghan media that reporting on the Taliban puts them in grave danger,” said Patricia Gossman, associate Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “This brutal killing of a journalist is nothing more than a cold-blooded execution and raises serious doubts about the protection of free expression in any peace deal with the Taliban.”
Dayee is one of dozens of Afghan journalists who in recent months have increasingly received threats from the Taliban. Many have told Human Rights Watch that they had also been warned not to report on Taliban activities.
Journalists who knew Dayee, 33, said that in the weeks before the attack, the Taliban had searched Dayee’s house, questioned him about his movements, and asked local residents to report on his behavior. The night before he was killed, Dayee had emailed a colleague saying he believed his life was in danger.
Dayee had told colleagues that, in October, the Taliban had explicitly warned him not to report on the Taliban’s recent operations in Helmand province or on any loss of territory or deaths of Taliban fighters, or to suggest that the Taliban were violating the agreement with the United States on the terms of the US withdrawal.
On November 12, the Taliban issued a statement accusing the Afghan media of engaging in “enemy propaganda” and defamation against the Taliban.
Residents of Taliban-held areas have long expressed fear of retaliation if they complain about the way Taliban forces carry out military operations or enforce restrictions. In a report released in June, Human Rights Watch said the Taliban have imposed severe restrictions in areas under their control despite claims of reform, and have placed severe limits on freedom of expression and the media.
The Taliban assert that they hold commanders and other authorities accountable for abuses, but Taliban officials have seldom considered practices amounting to war crimes, including unlawful attacks on civilians, to be wrongful acts.
The Taliban should immediately cease all threats and attacks on the media, and all acts of intimidation, harassment, and summary punishment of residents who have criticized Taliban policies, Human Rights Watch said. Countries supporting the Afghan peace negotiations in Doha should condemn these attacks and press the Taliban to publicly commit to ending all attacks on the media and to uphold freedom of expression in any settlement.
“The Taliban appear emboldened by the peace talks to commit deadly abuses without fear of being held accountable,” Gossman said. “Countries supporting the talks need to press for effective protections for the media throughout Afghanistan.”
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Death, Killing, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to life
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Suspected non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Date added
- Nov 15, 2020
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Aug 14, 2020
- Event Description
A female member of Afghanistan’s peace negotiating team has been slightly wounded in an assassination attempt, officials say.
Fawzia Koofi, who is also a former parliamentarian, was attacked on Friday afternoon near the capital, Kabul, while returning from a visit to the northern province of Parwan.
Koofi is part of a 21-member team charged with representing the Afghan government in upcoming peace talks with the Taliban, following a US deal with the militants that was struck in February.
The head of the Afghan peace delegation, Mohammed Masoom Stanekzai, wrote that Koofi had survived the attack and was “in good health”. 'Peace where rights aren’t trampled': Afghan women's demands ahead of Taliban talks Read more
Fawzia Koofi and her sister Maryam Koofi stopped at a market in the Qarabagh district when gunmen attacked them, said Tariq Arian, a spokesman for the interior ministry.
Both the Taliban and an Islamic State group affiliate continue to carry out attacks against Afghan government figures, but Zabihullah Maujhid, a Taliban spokesman, denied the group was involved.
Koofi is also a women’s rights activist who has been a vocal Taliban critic. A message on her Facebook page said she suffered a wound to her right arm. “Thankfully not a life threatening injury.”
Arian said police were launching an investigation. No further details of the assault were available, he said.
The US peace deal aims to recruit the Taliban to fight Islamic State militants in Afghanistan. The Taliban and IS are enemies.
The peace deal also paved the way for US and Nato forces to begin withdrawing from Afghanistan, and for the Taliban and Afghan government to begin direct talks.
The Afghan government said on Friday that it had released the first 80 of a final 400 Taliban prisoners ahead of direct negotiations between the two sides.
Prisoner releases on both sides are part of the agreement signed in February between the US and the Taliban. It calls for the release of 5,000 Taliban held by the government and 1,000 government and military personnel held by the insurgent group as a goodwill gesture ahead of intra-Afghan negotiations.
Talks are expected to be held in Qatar, where the Taliban maintain a political office. Several Afghan leaders told the Associated Press talks could begin by 20 August.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Violence (physical), Wounds and Injuries
- Rights Concerned
- Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- WHRD
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Suspected non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Date added
- Aug 27, 2020
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Aug 27, 2020
- Event Description
Saba Sahar, an Afghan filmmaker and actress, was shot on her way to work on Tuesday.
According to the BBC, Sahar was in her car in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, when she was shot several times. Her husband, Emal Zaki, told the outlet three gunmen opened fired.
The 44-year-old, who is also a police officer and a women's rights advocate, was rushed to the hospital.
Sahar's husband said there were other people in the car as well: the driver, two bodyguards (who also got shot) and a child. The driver and the child weren't hit and the report didn't clarify if the child was Sahar's.
"I reached the scene and found them all wounded," Zaki recalled. He said he could hear the gunshots. "She received first aid and we transferred her to the emergency hospital and then to the police hospital," he continued.
According to her husband, Sahar was shot in the stomach and underwent successful surgery.
"The Law" filmmaker is one of Afghanistan's first female film directors, according to the BBC.
In a tweet after the attack, Amnesty International South Asia wrote: "Afghanistan: The rise in attacks and assassination attempts on human rights defenders, political activists, journalists and film actors is extremely worrying.
"These attacks must be investigated and the perpetrators held accountable. The authorities must protect everyone at risk," it continued.
Sahar previously spoke to The Guardian in 2012 about her work.
"I want to show that Afghan women are capable of doing anything men do," she explained.
"I want to show the conservatives who lock their daughters and wives at home that they should let them out to get an education, earn some money and help rebuild Afghanistan," Sahar continued.
"Every morning when I leave the house, I know I might get killed, might never see my family again," she revealed.
"Making movies is my love," described Sahar. "I love my country. I want to show people that there's more to Afghanistan than fighting, drugs and terrorism. If I die for asking for my rights and inspiring other women to fight for theirs, then I'm ready to lose my life."
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Violence (physical), Wounds and Injuries
- Rights Concerned
- Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment, Women's rights
- HRD
- Artist, WHRD
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Extremist group
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Date added
- Aug 27, 2020
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Aug 1, 2020
- Event Description
Afghanistan government must bring to justice perpetrators of the attack on Asmatullah Salaam a Civil Society Activist and Head of Local Council in Andar District of Ghazni Province.
Safety and Risk Mitigation Organization (SRMO) strongly condemns the killing of Mr Salaam and demand the Afghan government to bring the perpetrators to justice.
According to the report, Mr Salaam was travelling to visit his relatives during the second day of Eid (1st of August 2020) in Khwzeyo village in Andar District of Ghanzni Province, where Taliban stopped his car, kidnapped him and his body was recovered a day later on 2nd August in Wahghez District with severe sings of torture.
SRMO stresses the urgency for the protection of the Human Rights Defenders (HRDs) in Afghanistan as the organization has documented a worrying trend of increasing targeted attacks against the HRDs by Taliban across Afghanistan. This is a continuation of a series of violent attacks against human rights defenders including Women Human Rights Defenders, civil society activists and media workers which have been carried out with impunity. Despite the fact that the Afghanistan government launched the Human Rights Defenders Protection Strategy in January 2020, the government has failed g to investigate such crimes and bring the perpetrators to justice.
These attacks deliberately targeting the HRDs have a chilling effect on the wider community of human rights activists and civil society in Afghanistan who have already reported shrinking of their space to express opinion and hold the powerful to account.
Taliban announced ceasefire during the Eid in Afghanistan but it did not stop conducting deliberate and targeted attacks such as this incident, on Afghan HRDs, CSOs and other civilians. In the context of the upcoming peace talks between the Afghanistan Government and the Taliban, the role of civil society and HRDs is extremely vital as they bring the voice and speak out in defence of the rights and freedoms of Afghan society and victims, which is important to end the cycle of violence and reach a sustainable peace in Afghanistan. HRDs must never be targeted for simply carrying out their legitimate and peaceful work to promote and protect the human rights of Afghan people. The deliberate attack on HRDs in the context of the armed conflict constitutes a war crime.
SRMO is calling on Afghan government to do everything to protect Human Rights Defenders and Women Human Rights Defenders in Afghanistan and bring the perpetrators of such crimes to justice.
SRMO is also calling on Taliban to do everything to refrain its fighters from attacking HRDs, WHRDs, CSOs members and media workers in Afghanistan and punish the ones who are deliberately attacking, threatening and killing Afghan civilians including HRDs, WHRDs, CSOs members and media workers.
International and diplomatic community must put pressure on Afghan government to take the protection of Afghan HRDs seriously and bring the perpetrators of crimes against HRDs to justice.
In a previous attack on human rights defenders, Taliban targeted two staff members of the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) in Kabul on 27 of June 2020; and on 3rd June 2020 Mr. Ibrahim Ebrat, a local civil society activist was killed in Qalat city of Zabul province. To date no investigation or arrests were made in connection to his killing despite promises by the government to do so.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Death, Killing, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to life
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Extremist group
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Date added
- Aug 21, 2020
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Jun 27, 2020
- Event Description
It is with deep regret that the AIHRC announces that its employees lost their lives when their car was targeted by an IED in Kabul this morning, Saturday, 27 June, 2020. They were Fatima Khalil, a Donor Liaison Officer and Jawid Folad, a driver. They were traveling in a Commission shuttle taking them to the office early this morning when the vehicle was struck by an IED at Butkhak Square, District, 12.
AHIRC sends deepest condolences to the families of these respected colleagues. The Commission is shocked by their killing which goes against the teachings of Islam, the Constitution, and International Human Rights and Humanitarian Law.
Ms Khalil was a young human rights defender at the beginning of her career. That she will not be able to fulfill her enormous potential is a tragedy. Mr Folad was one of the Commission�s longest serving and loyal drivers.
We condemn such a heinous attack on our employees in the strongest possible terms. As of now, no group has claimed the responsibility of the attack and the perpetrators have not been identified yet. Those responsible should be identified after an investigation and brought to justice for committing this terrible crime.
This is not the first time that Commission staff have been targeted and paid the ultimate sacrifice. Last September, Abdul Samad Ameri, the Acting Head of the Ghor Provincial Office was abducted on the Kabul-Ghor highway in Maidan Wardak Province and killed two days later by gunfire.
In previous years other AIHRC personnel have also lost their lives in targeted attacks. This forms a pattern of attacks on a constitutionally mandated national human rights institution that is unparalleled. It is intolerable. In the context of armed conflict deliberately killing human rights defenders is a war crime.
AIHRC assures all Afghans that it remains committed to promoting and protecting human rights in Afghanistan.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Death, Killing, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to life
- HRD
- NHRI/ NHRI staff, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Unknown
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Unknown
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Date added
- Aug 21, 2020
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Jun 24, 2020
- Event Description
Free media support organization, NAI, on Wednesday the summoning of Pajhwok Afghan News editor in chief to the Wolesi Jirga in connection with a report on smuggling of 32 ventilators was against the law.
In a statement, NAI said that every complaint from media should be addressed through Media Complaints and Investigation Commission.
The statement read: �On Wednesday Pajhwok Afghan News head Danish Karokhel was summoned to the Wolesi Jirga and was asked to provide explanation regarding the smuggling report of 32 ventilators published by his organization.�
NAI believed this act of Wolesi Jirga was against the media law, which has been approved by the parliament.
Separately, First Vice President Amrullah Saleh in a tweet rejected smuggling of ventilators to Pakistan.
He wrote: �NO ventilator is missing from the inventory of the Ministry of Health in Kabul or provinces. NONE. Don't fall in the trap of lies & falsehood. When someone tells you that your nose was stolen by the cat touch your nose first before chasing the onlooking cat. Calm down.�
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Administrative Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- #COVID-19, Online
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Government
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Date added
- Aug 21, 2020
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- May 1, 2020
- Event Description
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) calls on the Afghan authorities to protect Vida Saghari, a journalist and women�s rights activist who is being threatened by a fundamentalist cleric in the western city of Herat because she criticized him for holding a religious gathering in violation of the coronavirus lockdown.
Saghari became the target of Mullah Mujib Alrahman Ansari�s anger after she, like many other social media users, posted critical comments on Facebook alongside a photo of the gathering of around 100 Muslims that he organized in Herat on the first day or Ramadan, 1 May, ignoring a ban on religious gatherings by claiming that �the coronavirus is for infidels, not for Muslims.�
The outcry about the gathering is all the greater because Herat is the epicentre of the Covid-19 epidemic in Afghanistan. It was to the epidemic�s many victims that Saghari alluded when she wrote, �Ask the gravediggers to dig a tomb for Mullah Mujib Alrahman Ansari, this ignorant plague lord who wants people to die.� She added that �people have a normal brain� and the leaders who guide them must be �responsible.�
Within hours, Ansari responded with a Facebook post attacking Saghari: �Who holds the leash on Vida Saghari, this woman who poses as a civil society activist in Kabul? Sorry, I�m going to be insulting about her. She is impolite and unveiled, ugly words issue from her mouth and witnesses say she prostitutes herself (...) She has written several times about me and Muslims in the past few days, saying we must not pray together because our gatherings will spread the coronavirus. Vida Saghari is more dangerous than the virus.�
The post marked the start of a violent cyber-harassment campaign against Saghari, who has been the target of hate speech, insults and death threats by Ansari�s supporters on social media ever since.
Ansari often expresses reactionary and misogynistic views. In January, he created a �committee for the regulation of good and the prohibition of evil� with the aim of enforcing the Sharia in Herat. The committee took a particular interest in women, calling for them to wear the veil and not work outside the home. He banned women from attending a press conference on 16 January on the grounds that �Islam does not allow women to be present at work alongside men.�
�In response to the behaviour of the fundamentalists and the threats to press freedom, which the constitution guarantees, the silence of the Afghan authorities is unacceptable,� said Reza Moini, the head of RSF�s Afghanistan/Iran desk. �Whether or not you appreciate Vida Saghari�s criticism, the harassment and attacks to which she has been subjected are completely intolerable and everything must be done to guarantee her protection.�
The Centre for the Protection of Afghan Women Journalists (CPAWJ), which is also calling for protection for Saghari, points that more that 20% of women journalists have lost their jobs since the start of the lockdown.
Afghanistan is ranked 122nd out of 180 countries in RSF�s 2020 World Press Freedom Index.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Gender Based Harassment, Online Attack and Harassment, Vilification
- Rights Concerned
- #COVID-19, Online, Right to protect reputation
- HRD
- Media Worker, WHRD
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Extremist group
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Date added
- Aug 21, 2020
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Nov 21, 2019
- Event Description
Afghanistan's intelligence agency has publicly acknowledged that it is holding two activists who exposed allegations of sexual abuse of children in eastern Afghanistan.
Human rights groups and others have been pointing fingers at the National Directorate for Security since the activists, Musa Mahmoudi and Ehsanullah Hamidi, disappeared on November 21.
The two had revealed that at least 546 boys from six schools in Logar province were abused by a pedophile ring that included teachers and local government officials.
Their organization, the Logar Youth, Social and Civil Institution, discovered more than 100 videos on Facebook that showed the abuse.
The government is under intense pressure from activists and influential politicians, like former president Hamid Karzai, to release the activists.
The "Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission is deeply concerned about the illegal detention of civil society activists, Mr. Musa Mahmudi and Ehsanullah Hamidi, who were investigating the cases of alleged child sexual abuse in Logar province," tweeted Afghanistan's human rights body.
In its statement Tuesday, the NDS claimed the two were moved to a safe location for protection against threats to their lives. The agency also claimed that the two had revealed during interrogations that they made up the child abuse allegations, in order to get asylum in a foreign country.
The agency also released a video of the two in which one of the activists, Mahmoudi, was seen confessing that his research was incomplete and apologizing to the people of Afghanistan and particularly of Logar province.
Without naming the two, President Ashraf Ghani said Monday that it was not acceptable for asylum seekers to undermine the dignity of Afghans.
Human rights groups are rejecting the government's account.
"Instead of punishing them for speaking out against the sexual abuse of children, the authorities should praise them and hold the perpetrators accountable" tweeted Amnesty International's South Asia office.
Before their detention, the activists had reached out to rights groups and some journalists, expressing concern for their safety.
"Hours before his detention, Mussa told the Guardian (newspaper) how he had been receiving threats and believed he was under surveillance by Afghan security services," reported The Guardian Monday.
According to The Guardian, which broke the story earlier this month, multiple victims have since been murdered, sometimes by their own relatives.
"Five families killed their sons after their faces were seen on videos posted to social media. Two other boys a 13 and 15-year-old were killed last week, although the perpetrators are unknown," the Guardian story said.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Abduction/Kidnapping
- Rights Concerned
- Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- RTI activist
- Perpetrator-State
- Unknown
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Unknown
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Date added
- Nov 26, 2019
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Sep 29, 2019
- Event Description
Multiple media violations against journalists were recorded during the fourth round of Afghanistan’s presidential elections on Saturday, September 28. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins its Afghanistan affiliate, the Afghan Independent Journalists Association (AIJA) in highlighting the challenges for journalists in covering elections and calls for stronger efforts to stop election-related violations that impact the media’s ability to report.
According to AIJA, at least three journalists were attacked during the weekend election, which was covered by local and international media in various parts of Afghanistan. AIJA also fielded at least ten complaints by journalists regarding access to information, access to voting sites and telecommunications shutdowns.
In the early hours of September 29, the journalists Maqbol Noori, of Salam Watandar, reported he was threatened and humiliated and his phone taken when the brother of the chief of the provincial council of Parwan province entered the Jul Saraj voting site with his bodyguards. The incident occurred when the journalist requested to take a picture of him. His phone was later returned when police were called in to intervene.
Blocking of access to reporting was also recorded in the first hours of the election at around 10 am in provinces including Kabul, Khost, Bamyian, Balkh and Faryab. AIJA reported that some issues were resolved with the help of Afghanistan’s election commission and other security agencies. One complaint recorded by journalist Said Ismail Sadat, of Sima radio, in Samangan province was that media were denied access to report during vote counting at a local school voting site at Ajani Malika.
In a statement AIJA said it “appreciates efforts of Independent Election commission for cooperation with media which lead to unprecedented coverage of elections and hopes that these problems will not be seen in future elections.”
The IFJ said: “With further voting still to come in Afghanistan’s presidential election campaign, we call on Afghanistan’s election commission and security forces to ensure that all officials are educated and trained to respect the importance of transparency, safety and access to information for the country’s media during elections.”
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Intimidation and Threats, Vilification
- Rights Concerned
- Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Non-state
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Date added
- Oct 4, 2019
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Sep 28, 2019
- Event Description
Multiple media violations against journalists were recorded during the fourth round of Afghanistan’s presidential elections on Saturday, September 28. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins its Afghanistan affiliate, the Afghan Independent Journalists Association (AIJA) in highlighting the challenges for journalists in covering elections and calls for stronger efforts to stop election-related violations that impact the media’s ability to report.
According to AIJA, at least three journalists were attacked during the weekend election, which was covered by local and international media in various parts of Afghanistan. AIJA also fielded at least ten complaints by journalists regarding access to information, access to voting sites and telecommunications shutdowns. The reporter Abdul Rahman Hamad, of Kawoon Ghag Radio, was wounded on September 28 in Baghlan province. He was treated in hospital in Kabul, before returning to work.
In the early hours of September 29, a third journalists Maqbol Noori, of Salam Watandar, reported he was threatened and humiliated and his phone taken when the brother of the chief of the provincial council of Parwan province entered the Jul Saraj voting site with his bodyguards. The incident occurred when the journalist requested to take a picture of him. His phone was later returned when police were called in to intervene.
Blocking of access to reporting was also recorded in the first hours of the election at around 10 am in provinces including Kabul, Khost, Bamyian, Balkh and Faryab. AIJA reported that some issues were resolved with the help of Afghanistan’s election commission and other security agencies. One complaint recorded by journalist Said Ismail Sadat, of Sima radio, in Samangan province was that media were denied access to report during vote counting at a local school voting site at Ajani Malika.
In a statement AIJA said it “appreciates efforts of Independent Election commission for cooperation with media which lead to unprecedented coverage of elections and hopes that these problems will not be seen in future elections.”
The IFJ said: “With further voting still to come in Afghanistan’s presidential election campaign, we call on Afghanistan’s election commission and security forces to ensure that all officials are educated and trained to respect the importance of transparency, safety and access to information for the country’s media during elections.”
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Violence (physical), Wounds and Injuries
- Rights Concerned
- Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Unknown
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Unknown
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Date added
- Oct 4, 2019
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Sep 27, 2019
- Event Description
Multiple media violations against journalists were recorded during the fourth round of Afghanistan’s presidential elections on Saturday, September 28. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins its Afghanistan affiliate, the Afghan Independent Journalists Association (AIJA) in highlighting the challenges for journalists in covering elections and calls for stronger efforts to stop election-related violations that impact the media’s ability to report.
According to AIJA, at least three journalists were attacked during the weekend election, which was covered by local and international media in various parts of Afghanistan. AIJA also fielded at least ten complaints by journalists regarding access to information, access to voting sites and telecommunications shutdowns.
The first incident occurred the evening ahead of the election at around 5.30pm on Friday, September 27. Rahmatullah Nikzad, a reporter for Al Jazeera TV, was injured when a bullet hit him in his leg in Ghazni province.
Blocking of access to reporting was also recorded in the first hours of the election at around 10 am in provinces including Kabul, Khost, Bamyian, Balkh and Faryab. AIJA reported that some issues were resolved with the help of Afghanistan’s election commission and other security agencies. One complaint recorded by journalist Said Ismail Sadat, of Sima radio, in Samangan province was that media were denied access to report during vote counting at a local school voting site at Ajani Malika.
In a statement AIJA said it “appreciates efforts of Independent Election commission for cooperation with media which lead to unprecedented coverage of elections and hopes that these problems will not be seen in future elections.”
The IFJ said: “With further voting still to come in Afghanistan’s presidential election campaign, we call on Afghanistan’s election commission and security forces to ensure that all officials are educated and trained to respect the importance of transparency, safety and access to information for the country’s media during elections.”
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Violence (physical), Wounds and Injuries
- Rights Concerned
- Offline, Right to healthy and safe environment
- HRD
- Media Worker
- Perpetrator-State
- Unknown
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Unknown
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Date added
- Oct 4, 2019
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Sep 4, 2019
- Event Description
The last time Musa Mahmodi saw his friend alive, the young human rights defender said he knew his life was at risk. It was August in Kabul, and Abdul Samad Amiri, 28, had recently traveled the 10 hours east to the capital from his home province of Ghowr, where persistent threats from the Taliban and local militias had created an increasingly volatile environment. “The Taliban was everywhere there, and I was so scared,” Mahmodi, Amiri’s former boss at Afghanistan’s governmental Independent Human Rights Commission, recalled Amiri saying about his journey. Weeks later, on the same road, Amiri was found shot dead, according to Wardak province police spokesman Hekmatullah Durani. The Taliban has not commented publicly on the attack, but Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said Friday that the militants were responsible for his killing and that it amounted to “a crime against humanity.” Amiri’s violent death last week came amid a spike in Taliban violence in the days after the top U.S. negotiator in peace talks with the group said the two sides had reached an agreement “in principle.” On Saturday evening, President Trump unexpectedly called off the talks, saying in a tweet he had canceled plans to “secretly meet” with Ghani and Taliban leaders at Camp David on Sunday over concerns of escalating violence, including a bombing that killed a U.S. service member in Kabul on Thursday. Taliban spokesman Suhail Shaheen tweeted on Sunday that an agreement between U.S. and Taliban officials had been “finalized” in recent days and the Qatari government planned to announce it, seeming to contradict Trump’s claims. “President Trump’s tweets have been unbelievable and certainly damaged his credibility,” he wrote. In recent days, Afghan officials and civilians have expressed concerns that a U.S. deal with the Taliban that excluded the Afghan government would fail to protect civilians and security forces in the event of a U.S. troop drawdown. Amiri’s killing left his community in Afghanistan reeling over the loss of someone they said was a devoted family man and an energetic, selfless advocate for justice — someone who represented the best of what his generation had to offer. As acting head of the commission’s office in Ghowr, Amiri was aware of the risks his work posed. The commission promotes women’s rights and religious freedoms, and training defense forces and religious scholars in human rights. He had worked extensively on reports about civilian killings in his home region and was responsible for looking into incidents suspected to be perpetrated by the Taliban. That work made him a target of the militant group, which governed Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001 and has been fighting the Afghan government and allied forces ever since. The Taliban’s rule was marked by a repressive interpretation of Islamic law that restricted the rights of women and minorities. Four members of the commission for which Amiri worked have been killed in recent years, including a former head of the same office in Ghowr. And just last week, Amnesty International reported that human rights defenders in Afghanistan are “under intensifying attacks from both the authorities and armed groups.” “This is one of the most dangerous moments to be a human rights activist in Afghanistan,” Amnesty International’s deputy South Asia director, Omar Waraich, said in a statement at the time, pointing to others who had been targeted for their work. After Amiri’s death, Amnesty said his killing was “a war crime.” Amiri had recently considered moving to the United States, Mahmodi said, but had changed his mind, compelled to instead continue his investigations in Ghowr and support his sisters’ dreams of graduating from university. In a phone call from India, where she is studying for a master’s degree, his younger sister Atifa said that she was in shock from the news of his death. Boys’ education is often prioritized over that of girls in Afghanistan. But Amiri helped her with chores so she could take college prep courses, she said, then supported her when she decided to pursue further education abroad. “He was not only a brother, he was a friend and supporter,” she said. “I can’t be happy anymore. I am hopeless.” He was recently married, and his wife had just given birth to a baby girl. In a photo his sister shared on social media, he cradles his daughter close to his face, beaming with pride.
Amiri’s killing and a spate of attacks in Kabul in recent days have left civilians here on edge. Last week, the Taliban claimed responsibility for an attack on a Kabul compound housing foreigners that left 16 people, mainly Afghan civilians, dead. On Thursday, the group bombed a busy traffic circle in the capital, killing 10 Afghan civilians and two NATO troops, including an American. Amiri belonged to the minority Hazara ethnic group, a frequent target of Taliban attacks, making him an even more likely mark. In Kabul, members of the Hazara community, most of whom practice Shiite Islam, are bracing for an upcoming holiday, fearing mosques and public gatherings could be targeted. Mahmodi said that as an impartial human rights investigator, Amiri would often attend to the immediate aftermath of serious crimes, risking his own life to ensure justice for the victims. “He was the first to send a report and call an investigator and say, okay, this happened,” Mahmodi said. And he took notice of worrying incidents that others often overlooked — launching, for example, an investigation into an increase in women’s suicides in his province. “His investigations were thorough, his work was very good quality, his reports were credible,” Mahmodi said. “Everything he was doing was very good, and he was also so personally dedicated.” An ardent reader and excellent student, Amiri earned his bachelor’s degree in political science from Kabul University before pursuing a career in human rights advocacy, said Khodayar Naiebzada, a childhood friend. In his hometown, Naiebzada said, “the people were proud of him and counted on him.” In a Facebook post last week, Amiri shared a photo of himself standing on a mountaintop in Ghowr. In the caption below, he reflected on how much he’d grown in the seven years since he graduated from university. Through his work and travels, he said, he had gained a better understanding of “the trauma of 40 years of war.” “I believe that we have obligations to our mother country, and whatever I do for my country, though insufficient to what I owe, makes me happy,” he wrote. “Despite the difficulties, I owe my life to this land and will work for its betterment so long as I live.” He was killed shortly after.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Death, Intimidation and Threats, Killing, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to life
- HRD
- Freedom of religion/belief activist, Minority rights defender, NHRI/ NHRI staff
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Extremist group
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Date added
- Oct 1, 2019
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- Jul 23, 2019
- Event Description
Safety and Risk Mitigation Organization (SRMO) is condemning the assassination of Saeed Karim Musawi a Human Rights Defender and civil society activist in Kunduz city city on 23 July 2019. Saeed Karim Musawi a known Human Rights Defender and CSO activist was shot and killed by two gunmen who were riding on a motorbike and escaped the scene. He was targeted near his home at Kunduz city Khanabad Bandar square when he was heading home and a police investigation is going on. According to civil society activists from Kunduz, the target of intellectuals is becoming more frequent in the province which is scaring everyone who is critical of the current security and political situation in the province. No one claimed responsibility for the attack so far. Kunduz is one of the insecure provinces in the North of Afghanistan where Taliban managed to take over the city twice between 2015-2016 and Taliban continue to make advances in the province. SRMO is calling on the Afghan government to do investigate the assassination of Mr. Musawi and other intellectuals in the province, bring the perpetrators to justice and use all its resources to ensure the safety and security of Human Rights including Women Rights Defenders, civil society activists and journalists in Afghanistan. Meanwhile, the Afghan Civil Society Joined working group in a statement condemned the killing and said this attack indicates that terrorists and Afghanistan enemy has no respect for human rights, Islamic values and freedom of expression, and their main goal is the killing of innocent and impartial individuals of the society. The group emphasizes that according the Islamic and international humanitarian laws, the civil society activists and civilians should not be targeted.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Man
- Violation
- Death, Killing, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to life
- HRD
- Community-based HRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Unknown
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Unknown
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Date added
- Sep 19, 2019
- Country
- Afghanistan
- Initial Date
- May 12, 2019
- Event Description
Kabul, Afghanistan (CNN)A prominent Afghan journalist and parliamentary adviser has been killed in Kabul, an Interior Ministry spokesman told CNN Sunday. Mina Mangal, who had worked as a television presenter for popular Pashto-language channels before entering politics, was gunned down in broad daylight Saturday morning in southeast Kabul, according to ministry spokesman Nasrat Rahimi. Police investigations are underway to find the attackers who shot Mangal, Rahimi added. The brazen attack sparked an outpouring of anger and sadness from Mangal's colleagues and women's rights activists, who condemned authorities for failing to protect her in the face of threats. Afghan women's rights activist Wazhma Frogh said that Mangal had recently posted on Facebook that she had been receiving threats and feared for her life. "Can't stop my tears at the loss of this beautiful soul. She had a loud voice, & actively raising voice for her people. In this Facebook status she says she's threatened & she says she she trusts her Allah & that a strong woman isn't scared of death. RIP Mina Mangal," Frogh said in a post on Twitter. Mangal, herself a staunch supporter of women's rights to education and work, had recently become a cultural commission of the Afghan parliament. One of her colleagues, member of parliament Shagufa Noorzai, said that her death was part of a pattern of women targeted in Kabul's streets. "#Farkhunda was burned to death, #BabyMahsa was kidnapped, raped & killed, #BibiAyesha nose was cut, Women got stoned and today #MinaMangal shoot 9 times. All these crimes took place mainly during the day & mainly in the green zone capital city of #Kabul. #StopKillingWomen," Noorzai tweeted. A journalist at Lemar TV, another channel where Mangal had worked, said that it was time for female journalists to be protected. "So sad to hear, Journalist& Advisor to the Parliament #MinaMangal assassinated today in Kabul by unknown person. She was a strong self made woman; RIP #Mina. She isn't the 1st and wouldn't be the last lost(unfortunately). Serious protection 4 female journalists! Is what we need," Zalma Kharooti said on Twitter. In addition to Lemar TV, Mangal also worked for Tolo TV, Afghanistan's largest private broadcaster, and Shamshad TV, a competitor. Journalists have become increasingly targeted in Afghanistan in recent years, with 13 killed in 2018 alone -- the most in any one year there, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. At least 48 journalists were killed in Afghanistan between 1994 and 2018.
- Impact of Event
- 1
- Gender of HRD
- Woman
- Violation
- Death, Extrajudicial Killing, Violence (physical)
- Rights Concerned
- Right to life, Women's rights
- HRD
- Media Worker, Pro-democracy defender, WHRD
- Perpetrator-State
- Unknown
- Perpetrator-Non-State
- Unknown
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Pending
- Date added
- Sep 19, 2019
19 shown of 19 entities