Forced marriage of a Taliban official to a married woman in Takhar.
Local sources in Takhar confirm that Mawlawi Barkatullah, the press officer for the Taliban’s intelligence department in the province, pressured a man into divorcing his wife and then married the woman.
According to the sources, the incident took place in the Pul-e-Shahrwan area of Taloqan city and the woman in question is originally from the Rustaq district. The woman, who is a mother of three, is now separated from her children and the children live with their father.
Mawlawi Barkatullah has been married twice before and this is her third marriage.
He was the deputy of the Takhar Ulema Council during the republican era, but after the Taliban returned, he became one of the group’s leading figures in the group’s intelligence in Takhar.
Violence, abuse of power and violations of personal freedoms by Taliban officials in Takhar and other provinces have been reported many times, and this incident is the latest example of this worrying trend.
