Taliban warns Kabul against killing captured militants

By Zabihullah Tamanna

KABUL

The Taliban militant group on Saturday reacted angrily to a recent Afghan government decision to execute Taliban prisoners that have been sentenced to death by Afghan courts.

In a statement, the group vowed to stage attacks on Afghan judicial institutions if a recent order by President Ashraf Ghani to execute Taliban prisoners was carried out.

Last week, during a speech to parliament, Ghani instructed judicial officials to provide him with lists of Taliban prisoners who had been sentenced to death for a final review.

In its Saturday statement, the Taliban vowed that -- if the executions were carried out -- the group would also target "those individuals and organizations that requested the death sentences".

The militant group went on to warn that the move could potentially endanger the lives of Afghan and foreign prisoners being held by the Taliban.

While the Taliban claims to treat captives in accordance with Islamic rules for prisoners, the group has warned that, if the government begins executing Taliban prisoners, Taliban courts could retaliate against captive Afghan and foreign soldiers.

In its statement, the Taliban went on to urge international human rights groups to use their influence to prevent the executions.

According to the Presidential Palace, Ghani asked for a review of all death sentences handed down against Taliban militants following an April 20 attack on security forces in Kabul in which at least 64 people -- including civilians -- were killed.

"Judicial bodies shared the first list of death row inmates with the president today," Shah Hussain Murtazawi, a spokesman for Ghani, said at a Saturday press conference, without providing an exact number.

"The president is committed to what he has promised," the spokesman asserted. "No one should doubt the readiness of the gallows for hanging terrorists."

He added: "All our deeds are in accordance with Islamic rules and the [Afghan] Constitution."