Afghanistan A video clip has caused a stir on social media, which is said to show militant Islamist Taliban burning musical instruments. The clip shows the Islamists insulting two musicians who were standing near the flames. The artists are laughed at and filmed by a surrounding crowd. The Taliban see making music as un-Islamic.
The footage circulated on social media shows that the clothes of the musicians insulted by the Taliban are torn and their hair is short. Hair cutting is a typical punishment used by the Taliban to punish those suspected of petty crimes. After the Islamists took power in August 2021, many musicians fled the country in fear for their lives and livelihoods.
It was initially unclear when the pictures, which are believed to have come from the province of Paktika in the south-east of the country, were taken. The two-minute clip had more than 48,000 views on Twitter on Saturday. “This video documents the Taliban’s barbaric attitude towards musicians and music in Afghanistanwhere music is banned,” exiled Afghan National Institute of Music founder Ahmad Sarmast tweeted about the footage.
Afghan pop singer Arjana Sajeed shared the video on Facebook and expressed sharp criticism. In it she condemned that her compatriots were insulted and that the instruments were burned. The musician, who also left the country last year, wrote that her heart hurts when she saw these pictures.
Meanwhile, it was also revealed that the new Afghan rulers expelled around 3,000 of their members for abusive activities. “You have been excluded as part of this review process so that we can build an unencumbered army and police agency in the future,” the head of the relevant body, Latifullah Hakimi, told AFP on Saturday.
The 2840 members from a total of 14 provinces of Afghanistan were accused of corruption and drug trafficking, among other things. “They interfered in people’s private lives. Some also had ties to Daesh,” Hakimi said, referring to the jihadist militia Islamic State (IS).
After taking power in Kabul in August 2021, the Taliban announced an amnesty for members of the opposition and opponents of the Taliban. But according to human rights organizations, at least a hundred people linked to the former government have since been killed by Taliban members. (APA/red)
