The leader of the Islamic Unity Party, Mohammad Mohaqiq, has warned that if pressure against Shia communities by the Taliban continues, they will no longer remain silent. He said that the grievances of the Shia community are not limited only to the Taliban’s Ministry of Justice but involve the entire system of the group.
Mohaqiq stated that Shia political movements have opposed the Taliban for the past five years, but have so far refrained from taking armed action against the group. According to him, the Taliban have now “pushed the Shia community to the edge of the cliff.”
His remarks came in response to reactions following the Taliban’s decision to evacuate the “Omid-e-Sabz” residential township in Kabul. A number of religious scholars and community elders from the Hazara and Shia communities have described the move as discriminatory, saying it represents an attempt at the forced displacement of Hazara and Shia residents.
Mohammad Mohaqiq also said that, over the past five years, some Shia community leaders had supported the Taliban, but they are now also expressing grievances over the group’s actions. He stressed that if measures such as the evacuation of the “Omid-e-Sabz” township continue, the Taliban will hear the voice of the Shia community “from a place they do not expect.”
Writer:Saeed Sameer
