Taliban Administration Insists on Eviction of Kabul’s Omid-e Sabz Township Residents
Residents of the Hazara-populated Omid-e Sabz township in western Kabul say that although they legally purchased their land and houses under the previous government, the Taliban administration continues to insist on their eviction and the return of the land.
Abdul Hakim Shari, acting Minister of Justice for the Taliban administration, stated in a meeting with charity foundation officials in Kabul that implementing the special court’s ruling concerning lands the administration calls “usurped” and “emirate-owned” is, according to him, both a religious and legal obligation.
The Taliban Ministry of Justice announced in a statement today, Tuesday, August 11, that Shari made these remarks yesterday. He also heads the commission responsible for preventing land usurpation and reclaiming usurped lands.
Shari claims that the process of verifying and reclaiming lands from what he terms “usurpers and illegal occupants” is a legal issue across the country, and linking it to ethnicity, religion, or language is “illogical.”
These statements come amid criticisms and accusations of ethnic bias concerning land cases, especially in Hazara areas, following the eviction orders issued against Omid-e Sabz residents.
Residents of Omid-e Sabz maintain that they purchased their land with official documents and according to court rulings under the previous republican government. They say they were informed about two weeks ago that they have only 10 days, until August 6, to vacate their homes.
Property owners have said that during this period they have approached the commission led by the acting Minister of Justice, the Taliban Ministry of Interior, and even the office of Mullah Hebtullah, the Taliban leader, but have received no response regarding the reconsideration of their cases.
The Taliban administration has declared over 1,500 jeribs (approximately 315 hectares) of Omid-e Sabz township land as “emirate-owned.” Abdul Hakim Shari had previously labeled the Hazara-populated Nawabad township in Ghazni similarly as “emirate-owned.”
