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Taliban patrol the streets of Kabul (symbolic image)
Photo: Marco Di Lauro / Getty Images
The United States, the European Union and other countries are concerned about reports from human rights organizations that former security forces have disappeared or been executed in Afghanistan. "We underline that the alleged acts constitute grave human rights violations and are in contradiction to the amnesty announced by the Taliban," said the joint statement published by the US State Department on Saturday (local time). "We call on the Taliban to effectively enforce the amnesty for former members of the Afghan security forces and former government officials."
The declaration was also signed by Germany, Switzerland, Great Britain, Japan, Canada and Australia. According to a report by the human rights organization Human Rights Watch (HRW) published on Tuesday, the militant Islamist Taliban have executed or disappeared more than 100 former soldiers, police and intelligence officials in four of the country's 34 provinces since they came to power around three and a half months ago. They could also have accessed employment records left behind by the former government. They used this data to arrest or kill ex-security forces.
The Taliban leadership had already declared a general amnesty for all security forces many months before they came to power and reaffirmed this several times after the fall of the capital Kabul.
Most of the provinces and the capital, Kabul, fell to the Islamists for the most part without a fight.
The security forces surrendered en masse in several provinces.
The statement published by the United States said that the reported cases must be investigated immediately and transparently.
In addition, those responsible would have to be held accountable.
"We are deeply concerned about the reports of killings and disappearances of former members of the Afghan security forces as documented by Human Rights Watch and others."
Afghans are still being flown out of Kabul by some states, such as France recently.
In addition, a joint diplomatic mission in the Afghan capital Kabul is apparently being considered.
After the Taliban came to power, France and other Western countries closed their embassies in the Afghan capital.
kig / dpa