Khaleq Ebrahimi
Translated by M. Rezaie
Jade Abresham Weekly— Hazaras of Afghanistan were just enjoying the life and felt relieved after many years of deprivation thanks to the military presence and economic support of the international community in Afghanistan. When the new waves of violence surged in 2010 in Afghanistan, Hazara ethnic group was the first group that their life was in danger in the country.
From deadly suicide attacks on Hazara gatherings, and armed Kochis attacks on Hazara villages to kidnappong and shot and killing Hazaras on the highways, our enemies aimed one think; Elimination of a specific ethnic group. Hazaras witnessed tragic incidents in the past decade that put them on the path of a bigger catastrophe, namely “Hazaras Genocide”.
Many of these tragic events have been forgotten and reminding them is the only way of combating such incidents. As a result, we mentioned the suicide attack on Ashura day in Abulfazl Shrine in Kabul and the armed Kochis attack on Hazaras. In this note, we would assess the tragic shot dead of 14 Hazra passengers who were kidnapped in Ghor province.
Firuz Koh killing
On Thursday, June 24, 2014, three flying coaches were moving from Firuz Koh the center of Ghor province to Kabul. The Taliban armed members, 25 kilometers to Firuz Koh, closed the way on the passengers and checked their identity documents. After searching the identity documents of the passengers, they kidnapped 15 people and released the other passengers.
Out of 15, one man could escape and share the details with the “France Press” and 14 passengers were first tortured and then shot dead. There was one bride, one groom, and the mother and sister of the bride among the victims. Office of the provincial governor of Ghor announced that all the passengers who were killed were Hazaras. They were segregated based on ethnicity and then they were tortured and killed.
According to BBC, Nematullah Rezaie Advisor to Ghor governor and a student of the military academy was one of the victims. Abdulhai Habibi the spokesperson of the office of the Ghor provincial governor said “the perpetrators of this deadly incident were the local Taliban.” And “they had several other attacks on government offices including attacking Charsada district, but their plots were foiled.”
The brutal killing was strongly condemned by different groups in Afghanistan and out of the country. UNAMA condemned killing the civilians. It also said most of the civilian casualties have been inflicted by the Taliban. The civil society activists staged protests in Kabul and urged the government to ensure the security of the people and bring to justice the perpetrators. They said killing the people based on their ethnicity poses serious dangers to the country as it has already experienced civil war.
Actions Taken by the Government
After this tragic incident, the office of the Ghor provincial government said it has asked the MOIA for more troops to suppress the insurgent groups. Mohammad Omar Daudzay who was the Minister of MOIA had pledged to the Ghor people to send them more troops to counter the insurgent groups in Ghor. At the same time, Hamid Karzai the former president of Afghanistan strongly condemned the brutal killing of civilians. He attributed the killing to the Taliban group and termed it “brutal”. Further, he said killing women and children was unforgivable and against religious and Islamic values.
He ordered ANSDF to investigate this terrorist attack. But the findings of the investigation have not been shared with the families of the victims, civil society, and media yet.
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