Over the last year, the Hazara, an ethno-religious minority group in Afghanistan, have been subjected to increased attacks. In August 2022, Islamic State–Khorasan Province (IS-K), the regional affiliate of the Islamic State, a terror organization, claimed responsibility for several attacks that resulted in over 120 fatalities within a few days alone. This adds to several other attacks over the last year that specifically targeted the Hazara places of worship, schools and other public places. The Taliban, the de facto authority exercising effective control, the Taliban, and a primary duty-bearer in view of Afghanistan’s legal obligations under international treaties, has not responded to the attacks to provide the community with assistance.
Piazza della Repubblica in Rome hosted a demonstration in support of the Hazara people to "denounce ... [+]
To address this silence, in April 2022, British Parliamentarians launched a Parliamentary inquiry into the situation of Hazara in Afghanistan and Pakistan (the Inquiry). The aim of the Inquiry is to consider the situation of the Hazara in Afghanistan and in Pakistan, map the crimes perpetrated against the group, and particularly, identify the assistance (legal, humanitarian, and otherwise) available to the community and its shortfalls; engage the U.K. Government and international actors with recommendations on assistance to the community; and identify justice and accountability avenues for legal recourse and engage them with the evidence gathered. The Inquiry has heard from survivors, experts, organizations assisting the communities, and anyone else with relevant knowledge of the situation of the community. Their first report, focused on the situation of the Hazara in Afghanistan, was published on September 2, 2022, mapping the situation and identifying the serious risk of genocide. The report found that, as a religious and ethnic minority, the Hazara are at serious risk of genocide at the hands of IS-K and the Taliban. This finding engages the responsibility of all states to protect the Hazara and prevent a possible genocide, under the UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (the Genocide Convention) and customary international law.
As the report stated, “When the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in 2021, it significantly affected the situation faced by the Hazara and reversed the 20-year progress made in addressing the marginalization and discrimination experienced by this minority group. The return to power of the Taliban has included brutal acts of violence against the Hazara throughout Afghanistan and a return of terror. The first half of 2022 has seen hundreds of members of the Hazara community killed and many more injured as a result of the targeted attacks, including bombings of Hazara schools, places of worship and other centers. This trend is likely to continue. There is a pressing need to provide the community with protection, in line with international obligations under the Genocide Convention.”
Commenting upon the report, Lord Alton of Liverpool, a member of the Hazara Inquiry and patron of the Coalition for Genocide Response, said that “over recent months, we have witnessed a serious and increasing risk of genocide against the Hazara. It is urgent that we act to protect this vulnerable targeted community before it is too late. The dire situation faced by Afghanistan’s Hazaras will deteriorate further if the crimes committed against them are met by inaction and impunity. We have duties under the Genocide Convention and it is about time we acted upon them.”
Shortly after the Hazara Inquiry report, Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported on the dire situation of the Hazara in Afghanistan. According to HRW, “since the Taliban took over Afghanistan in August 2021, [IS-K] has claimed responsibility for 13 attacks against Hazaras and has been linked to at least 3 more, killing and injuring at least 700 people.” As they find, “the Taliban authorities have done little to protect these communities from suicide bombings and other unlawful attacks or to provide necessary medical care and other assistance to victims and their families.”
The situation of the Hazara in Afghanistan will not improve without the international community putting pressure on the Taliban to act to protect the community. If this does not happen, neighboring countries must step up their game and provide assistance to the communities fleeing their homes.
