Date: 28/01/1404
An 18-year-old woman was forced into marriage with a Taliban commander in Badakhshan Province in exchange for the release of her brother from detention. According to sources cited by Base News Agency, the woman, identified as Tahmina, was compelled to marry Qari Shafiq, a local Taliban commander, after her family initially refused the proposal.
Local reports indicate that Qari Shafiq threatened and arranged the arrest of Tahmina’s brother, and conditioned his release on acceptance of the marriage. The family agreed under coercion. The brother was released following the marriage, alongside the transfer of 70 lakh AFN (approximately 7 million AFN) and four acres of land in the old town of Faiz to the family.
Qari Shafiq reportedly joined the Taliban following their return to power and subsequently held positions within the narcotics department and later the oil and petroleum department in Badakhshan Province. Local sources also report his cooperation with the Governor of Badakhshan, Ayub Khalid, in illegal mining activities in Shahr-e-Buzurg district.
The incident forms part of a broader pattern of forced marriages reported under Taliban control, involving the use of detention, threats, and inducements to override consent.

This case documents the use of detention and threat of continued imprisonment as coercive leverage to force a marriage involving a minor, illustrating how Taliban officials instrumentalize judicial and security power to override consent and family autonomy. The exchange of a woman for a relative’s release, combined with financial inducements, reflects a transactional practice that collapses marriage into punishment, reward, and asset transfer. The involvement of a Taliban commander underscores the abuse of official position to facilitate forced marriage, while the broader context indicates this is part of a recurring pattern rather than an isolated incident.