SUMMARY
In the context of its intrastate armed conflict against the [Government of Afghanistan the Taleban has continuously made use of one-sided violence. The first one-sided activity reaching the 25 deaths threshold was recorded in 1996. After the Taleban seized power in September 1996 the government it created made use of massive one-sided violence against those who opposed it. Information on these events, as well as one-sided violence carried out by the second Taleban regime starting in 2021, can be found in the Government of Afghanistan – civilians summary for the years 1997-2001, and 2021.
After being ousted from government the Taleban reinitiated their struggle, aiming to return to power. In the context of this conflict episode the Taleban also made use of one-sided violence, however not on a scale comparable to the atrocities committed while ruling the country.
The Taleban have attacked a wide range of targets, some being linked directly to the armed conflict and others being of a more ideological and religious type.
In the first category the Taleban have attacked a multiplicity of targets, the primary ones being aid and development workers (both foreigners and Afghans), people working with civilian functions for the international forces that are stationed in the country, Afghan elders and pro-government clerics and also civilians that are accused of being spies or collaborators with the government and the international presence. The targeting of these civilians should be seen in the light of the Taleban's attempts to dissuade civilians from any activities that support the government’s efforts towards developing the economy and expanding its control and legitimacy across it.
The second set of targets is less diverse, with the Taleban targeting civilians and institutions that do not adhere to their strict interpretation of sharia law. The most common target in this category has been school teachers, who have been targeted if they teach mixed classes (boys and girls together) or if they have taught classes composed entirely of girls. Such activities are strictly against the Taleban's interpretation of sharia law and were banned when they controlled the government in 1996-2001. Many civilians have also been ‘arrested’ by the Taleban, sentenced to death and executed for disobeying sharia law in other spheres.
In the run-up to the 2004, 2005, 2009, 2010, 2014, 2018, and 2019 elections the Taleban also attacked election-related targets with the goal of disrupting the process. Election workers (both foreign and Afghan) and candidates were targeted and killed, as well as many civilians that were discovered carrying election cards.
In attacks on civilians the Taleban primarily make use of small arms such as automatic rifles, but the group has also made use of suicide bombings to attack civilian targets. In those areas where the group has had a stronger presence and where it has been possible to ‘arrest’ or kidnap and execute people the group has also used hangings and the slitting of throats.
Geographically the focus of Taleban one-sided activity has been their southern strongholds, namely the provinces of Helmand, Kandahar, Zabul, Uruzgan, and Ghazni. There has also existed a strong Taleban presence in the southeast, meaning that a significant number of attacks have also been recorded in Nuristan, Khost, and Paktia provinces. In addition to these provinces the Taleban have carried out a smaller number of attacks in many other areas. Many of the most lethal suicide attacks have been carried out in the capital of Kabul.
The Taleban first became active as a one-sided actor in UCDP data in 1996, when the one-sided violence resulted in at least 25 civilian deaths. The threshold was reached in July that year when the Taleban executed at least 30 prisoners in the province of Hirat.
