'You're lucky you weren't beheaded': Afghan journalists beaten, kicked, crushed by Taliban for covering women's rights protest thought they were going to die



Two Afghan journalists were severely beaten and detained for hours by Taliban militants after filming a women's rights protest in Kabul on Wednesday, the Agence France-Presse reported.

In an interview with the news agency following the harrowing experience, photographer Nematullah Naqdi and his colleague Taqi Daryabi of Etilaat Roz (Information Daily) recalled being repeatedly punched, kicked, and beaten with batons, electrical cables, and whips.

"One of the Taliban put his foot on my head, crushed my face against the concrete. They kicked me in the head ... I thought they were going to kill me," Naqdi told the AFP.

Despite claims that the newly installed regime would be tolerant and inclusive, numerous reports have surfaced in recent days and weeks indicating that the Taliban is violently persecuting women, Christians, and journalists.

According to the AFP, on Wednesday the Taliban declared demonstrations illegal without permission from the justice ministry.

Journalists from the Etilaatroz newspaper, Nemat Naqdi, 28, a video journalist, left and Taqi Daryabi, 22, video editor undress to show their wounds sustained after Taliban fighters tortured and beat them while in custody. (MARCUS YAM/LOS ANGELES TIMES)

The Etilaat Roz journalists had reportedly been assigned to cover a demonstration in front of a police station in Kabul where Afghan women were demanding the right to work and pursue an education. But as soon as they took out their phones to capture photos and video of the protest, multiple Taliban accosted them and hauled them off to a police station, accusing them of organizing the event.

"They told me, 'You cannot film,'" Naqdi said. "They arrested all those who were filming and took their phones."

He said Taliban fighters tried to take his camera but he was able to hand it off to someone in the crowd before being dragged away and beaten. After several hours, the journalists were reportedly released and sent away without explanation.

"You're lucky you weren't beheaded," the Taliban fighters reportedly told the journalists, according to Naqdi.

"We were in so much pain that we couldn't move," Daryabi added. "They see us as enemies."

Etilaat Roz journalist Nematullah Naqdi (left) reacts as his colleagues help him wear a shirt in their office in Kabul after being released from Taliban custody. (WAKIL KOHSAR/AFP via Getty Images)

Zaki Daryabi, chief of the Etilaat Roz newspaper, confirmed the beating to the AFP, adding that the Taliban's public claims of tolerance are worthless. Dozens of journalists have reportedly been accosted and detained in recent weeks.

"This official speech is totally different from the reality that can be observed on the ground," he said.

VIDEO: Afghan TV anchor tells residents 'don't be afraid' as Taliban fighters stand behind him with guns



With Taliban fighters standing behind him brandishing guns, an Afghan news anchor nervously urged viewers over the weekend not to be "afraid" amid the fall of the Afghan government and the formation of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.

The bizarre scene demonstrates the danger that Afghan journalists are likely to face under Taliban rule and foreshadows the end of journalistic freedom in the country.

What happened?

Armed Taliban militants stormed into the building of Afghan television network Peace Studio during a live recording on Sunday, proceeding to hold the anchor hostage while he granted favorable coverage to the new regime, Republic World reported.

"Don't be afraid," the anchor reportedly said during the broadcast.

"With the Taliban militants breathing down his neck, the TV anchor addressed the news bulletin, talking about the collapse of the Ashraf Ghani-led government and the formation of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan," the news outlet reported. "Visibly afraid and uncomfortable, the presenter then went on to tell the nation to not be scared of the Taliban."

Video of the incident has since gone viral, having been viewed more than one million times on social media.

Afghanistan TV - surreal This is what a political debate now looks like on Afghan TV, Taliban foot soldiers watch… https://t.co/htlNQvcjqW

— Yalda Hakim (@BBCYaldaHakim) 1630262717.0

"Afghanistan TV - surreal," tweeted BBC World News anchor Yalda Hakim along with a video of the incident.

"This is what a political debate now looks like on Afghan TV, Taliban foot soldiers watching over the host," she added. "The presenter talks about the collapse of the Ghani govt & says the Islamic Emirate says the Afghan people should not be afraid."

A subsequent photo posted on Twitter by Afghan journalist Zaki Daryabi shows that at least eight Taliban fighters were involved in the news station storming.

This is what @Etilaatroz can’t accept. If so, we will stop our work. https://t.co/FueAC4c9cz

— Zaki Daryabi (@ZDaryabi) 1630259162.0

This is what [we] can't accept," she tweeted along with the image. "If so, we will stop our work."

What else?

Amid its takeover of Afghanistan in recent weeks, Taliban leaders promised a "lenient" government and "amnesty" for individuals who worked with Western governments and organizations over the last 20 years of U.S. military occupation.

But their promises have been empty ones. In reality, Taliban fighters have been "hunting down" journalists and persecuting women and religious minorities, including Christians.

The bloodthirsty militants reportedly murdered the relative of an Afghan journalist partnered with German news outlet Deutsche Welle last week. They also killed a 33-year-old Afghan who had translated for U.S. Special Forces and who worked with newspaper Die Zeit.

Republic World added that "the Taliban barred two women journalists ... who worked with the public broadcaster Radio Television Afghanistan" and "also attacked two other members of the press for covering the anti-Taliban protests taking place in the eastern Nangarhar province."

Their actions have reportedly caused many journalists and activists to flee the nation in fear.

WATCH: Afghanistan TV Anchor Surrounded By Armed Taliban Fighters on TV | Republic TV www.youtube.com

Taliban fighters are 'hunting down' journalists, carrying out revenge executions against Afghans who worked with the West



Despite promising "amnesty" to Afghan residents who worked with Western governments and organizations during the last 20 years of U.S. military occupation, Taliban forces in Afghanistan are now reportedly "hunting down" journalists and other supposed dissidents in order to execute them.

What are the details?

According to German news outlet Deutsche Welle, bloodthirsty militants on Thursday shot and killed a family member of an Afghan journalist who works with the Western media organization.

DW director general Peter Limbourg said the heinous attack was carried out during a house-to-house revenge search, during which another one of the unnamed journalist's family members was seriously injured. The journalist is reportedly safe, having escaped to Germany.

In a statement, Limbourg called on the German government to take action, exclaiming, "We are running out of time!"

"The killing of a close relative of one of our editors by the Taliban yesterday is inconceivably tragic, and testifies to the acute danger in which all our employees and their families in Afghanistan find themselves," Limbourg said. "It is evident that the Taliban are already carrying out organized searches for journalists, both in Kabul and in the provinces."

What else?

The New York Times on Friday detailed several other reports of the Taliban carrying out violence against Afghan journalists over the last several days:

Amdullah Hamdard, 33, who learned English as a teenager and translated for U.S. Special Forces — they gave him the nickname "Huggy Bear" — had spent the last four years working with Die Zeit newspaper. He was murdered by Taliban fighters on the street near his home in Jalalabad, the paper reported ...

... On Thursday, Taliban fighters beat two Afghan journalists while violently dispersing a protest in the eastern city of Jalalabad.

The Committee to Protect Journalists, a New York-based watchdog group, noted other attacks against journalists in recent days, including the fatal shooting on Aug. 9 of a radio station manager in Kabul, and the kidnapping of a reporter in Helmand Province. Afghan press freedom groups blamed the Taliban for both incidents.

An American journalist, Wesley Morgan, tweeted this week, "Taliban searching my former interpreter's house (he's hiding out elsewhere and can see it via the app on his phone from his home security cameras)."

Anything else?

The violence is in direct contradiction to the public messaging espoused by Taliban leadership since taking control of the country in recent days.

"I must remind you that we forgive everyone because it is in the interest of peace and stability in Afghanistan," Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid announced during a news conference on Tuesday. "All the groups that were confronting us are all forgiven."

However, it is revenge — not forgiveness — that has been observed, and not only against journalists. Taliban fighters have descended on communities to hunt down women and Christians, as well.