By: Rukhshana Media
The Taliban intelligence detained several members of the Women’s Movement for Equality at their first press conference and confiscated their mobile phones on Thursday afternoon, November 3, in west Kabul, a local source says.
According to the source, they were supposed to officially announce their movement today while the Taliban forces disturbed their event.
Nilofar*, a member of the Afghan Women’s Movement for Equality, tells Rukhshana Media that the building they had their press conference was surrounded by the Taliban, and attempts to leave the building was denied.
She says that they were locked in the building for a while and policewomen were searching and beating them.
Ms. Nilofar adds that several organizers of the movement, including Zarifa Yaqubi, a women’s rights activist were taken away by the Taliban forces.
Salma*, another member of the movement, says that the Taliban forces told them that they should have informed the police district, and then the Taliban policewoman confiscated their mobile phones violently with threats.
She says a Taliban fighter pointed his gun at her and said, “I am from the morality police, give me your phone, otherwise I will kill you”.
Meanwhile, another source on condition of anonymity also says that the Taliban first disrupted their press conference and beat up the journalists with several members of the movement and took them away to the investigation department.
It’s unclear how many women are detained by the Taliban forces.
The Taliban have not commented regarding the incident and the fate of women activists and journalists in Taliban’s custody is unclear.
Recently the Taliban have imposed ever-more stringent restrictions on women’s activities and movements.
Yesterday, in a similar event in west Kabul, where a number of female artists held a painting exhibition titled “Women” in memory of the martyrs of the Kaaj incident, the Taliban forces disrupted their event and detained three journalists, that were later released with a written comment that they won’t cover such events in the future.
*Note: The names of the interviewees have been chosen as pseudonyms as their request.
This is terrible news. I hope the women are released soon.