UN official slams Taliban over reprisal killings

Geneva: The UN human rights chief says her office has received credible allegations of reprisal killings by the Taliban of former Afghan security forces, as well as instances in which officials in the previous Government and their relatives were arbitrarily detained and later turned up dead.

Michelle Bachelet, speaking on Monday to the Human Rights Council, warned of a “new and perilous phase” for Afghanistan as she criticised the Taliban for a disconnect between



their words and actions.

She cited “multiple” allegations of Taliban house-to-house searches looking for officials from the previous government and “people who cooperated with US security forces and companies”.

Such searches took place in at least a half-dozen cities, Bachelet said. UN staffers have also reported increasing attacks and threats, she added, without providing specifics.