Meeting of the US representatives in the Congress on the retaliation of the Taliban, especially the Afghan prosecutors

1/ “The conditions that led to the environment of reprisals against justice officials are not the result of a single day or even a single year. During the 20-year mission of the United States in Afghanistan, Afghan attorneys were force multipliers and the “tip of the spear” for many efforts of the Department of State, Department of Justice, and Department of Defense. In the shape-clear-hold-build counterinsurgency paradigm, these individualsiii were tasked with upholding the rule of law in courtrooms facing many of the same Taliban, Haqqani, and Al Qaeda insurgent elements our troops encountered on the battlefield. My remarks today will focus on individuals involved in the criminal justice system – especially prosecutorsiv of the Taliban and insurgent groups who appear to be most at risk. There were many heroic efforts by attorneys in other areas of domestic violence against women, corruption, counternarcotics, and violent crime whose welfare I submit should also be our concern. v I’ll first focus on the Justice Center in Parwan (JCIP) where prosecutors bravely faced the insurgents who fought coalition troops on the battlefield. The JCIP was the central court where over 5000 trials of high value detainees took place. Those convicted routinely received lengthy prison sentences. The Taliban referred to the JCIP as an “American” court, so every Afghan justice sector official working there was and is at high risk. Without them, NATO military operations against insurgents would have been impossible due to Afghan law. Though trials took place at US-supported and controlled-access courtrooms, these officials are viewed as direct proxies for retribution against both Afghan and US prior military actions. The Department of Defense and Department of Justice have sponsored P1vi status for many individuals in this group – though the process is lengthy and results in ongoing reprisals against our allies. Other prosecutors held insurgents accountable for bombings, beheadings, torture, assassinations, and other criminal acts of terror against the Afghan civilian populace and NATO civilian elements. These prosecutors lived among the populace interfacing directly with the same insurgent elements that those in Afghan Government and NATO uniforms faced on the battlefield. Their faces and names were broadcast on televised media and circulated in print. They are well known among the insurgents at a higher profile than many other Afghan government officials or individuals directly employed by the US government – such as cooks or mechanics who have a pathway forward. I worked with one such individual whom I will call Abdul. In addition to insurgent prosecutions, he also helped establish the first Domestic Violence Unit in his prosecution office. He served as an important source of information on Taliban and malign nation state compromise of the prosecution office – which helped our team stay alive while doing our jobs for the US Government. He was kidnapped and tortured by the Taliban during my time with him – but returned to work as a prosecutor until the fall of the Afghan government. With his wife who was a media figure and English language instructor at a local university, they remain stranded alongside their 3 children with no legal pathway forward. They are on the run and actively hunted by the Taliban. In August 2021, most justice sector officials stood by their posts until the Taliban flooded the streets. All detainees in Afghan prisons were released and are now able to take retribution against the justice officials who put them in prison. Due in large part to their high-profile presence in the population centers and interactions with defendants, these officials are easily identified, unable to work, and now individually and categorically targeted for kidnapping, imprisonment, torture, rape, and murder…

2/ The Taliban has ongoing efforts to obtain listsvii of prosecutors through local mosques, community leaders, and house-to-house inquiries for targeted retribution.viii There has been a recent uptick in these reprisals. It is estimated that over 30 former prosecutors have been murdered in targeted killings.ix Daughters of justice officials are also at increased risk of forced marriage to Taliban members as retribution for the service of their mothers and fathers as justice officials. The Taliban draw no significant distinction in their quest for vengeance between parent and child.x The US Government through the Department of State was the lead for rule of law in training more than 2,000 justice sector attorneys.xi As Afghanistan sought to transition from a “Might Makes Right” governance of Taliban oppression, justice officials believed and trusted us when we said that rule of law was key to stability. They took risks based on their desire to build their own democracy – but we were the ones who advised and encouraged them to do so. The Department of State has allowed the JSG to submit visa applications for female defense and prosecuting attorneys. For this and their partnership, we are grateful – but these cases are lingering. We respectfully ask Congress to engage the Department of State and support expanding inclusion to all criminal justice sector officials and expedite the processing of their cases through a fast-track SIVxii , P1, or other legal pathway.”