Taliban set tents on fire, loot cattle in Bamyan

 Islamabad, Aug 17, IRNA -- The Taliban militiamen attacked the farmers who had taken refuge in the mountain in Shiberto, Qarghanato and Shahidan, west of the city of Bamyan, setting their tents on fire and looting their cattle, a spokesman for the United Front Mohammad Eshaq has said.

The people living in these mountain dwellings had received information in advance about the Taliban attacks and had left before the arrival of the attackers, leaving behind their cattle and food.

The Taliban fighters set on fire 400 tents, said Eshaq in a statement received on Friday.

The people living close to the city of Bamyan were forced to leave their houses and take refuge in the mountains after the Taliban recaptured the city and blew up its historic monuments.

The people of Bamyan are also facing difficulties due to the arrival of a large number of nomads from the South. Facing shortages of water and encouraged by the Taliban, a large number of nomads from the South have stormed Hazarajat.

The nomads graze their flocks in the fields and farms of local Hazaras. The local people cannot complain because the Taliban administration always takes the nomads side.

There are religious and political reasons for the maltreatment of Hazaras. Most of them belong to Shia Sect and do not support the Taliban regime.

Some months ago, the Taliban massacred hundreds of people in Yakawlang, a town in Bamyan, and set the town on fire. They also had carried out similar massacres against the Shia population in Mazar-e-Sharif in 1998.