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New Delhi: The Hazaras, a religious minority, have been the hardest-hit victims of oppression and terror activities, and became among the most persecuted groups when the Taliban last ruled Afghanistan. This time as well, it appears no different.
The hatred towards the community is mostly due to differences in sect and ethnic origins and both the Taliban and the Islamic State consider them as “infidels”.
With the fear of mass executions still looming in the minds of the Hazara Shias, many have fled to find shelter, to Quetta’s imambargahs in Balochistan with support from locals of the Hazara town. The Guardian reported that activists have claimed that around 10,000 of them arrived in Quetta.
According to a report by the human rights organisation Amnesty International, nine men of this community were captured and killed by the Taliban in July. Six of them were shot, while the other three tortured to death.
According to ‘Abu Turab’ volunteers, a Quetta-based group, the Hazara families have found temporary shelter in three imambargahs, where they are being provided with food and medical assistance, The Friday Times reported.
Social activist Kashif Hazara told the publication that about 20 families at imambargah Shaeed Baba Mizari are facing financial difficulties among other problems.
This comes after Pakistan officials barred the entry of Afghan nationals without proper documentation and initiated an investigation into the alleged security breach.
Deputy commissioner of Chaman, Jumma Dad Tareen estimated that about 5,000 families crossed the Pakistan Afghanistan border, out of which 3,000 are in Quetta.
Germany’s DW News quoted a Hazara political leader, Habiba Sarabi, the first female governor of Afghanistan, and one of the four women who represented the country in negotiations with the Taliban, saying that she “had proof of atrocities but couldn’t share details for fear of danger on the surviving eyewitnesses”.
Publications such as The Dawn and The Guardian quote some of those who have fled fearing persecution, among them is a 24-year-old shopkeeper named Sher Ali, who left Afghanistan with his wife and child after the Taliban allegedly killed his friend just days ago.
“When I went to the spot, Hussain’s dead body was lying on the road in a pool of blood. They emptied the AK-47 on him,” said Ali. “It was the moment I decided to leave. It is like a do or die situation for Hazara Shia; whether to leave and live, or stay and die,” he told The Guardian.
The Dawn quoted another Hazara family — Dr Khalid Hazara and his wife Latifa, a government official herself, who fled the country after the fall of Kabul.
The Hazaras are the third largest ethnic group and religious minority in Afghanistan and are around 10 per cent of the Sunni dominant country’s population. They are considered direct descendants of Genghis Khan and are believed to be of Mongolian and Central Asian descent.
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