Biometric ID system can be fatal in militant hands
Witnesses claim security, police personnel were fingerprinted before execution.
Hostages told security officials the Taliban checked the fingers of every passenger and killed those identified as soldiers or policemen PHOTO: AFP
ISLAMABAD:
Concerns are rife in Afghanistan over the possibility of Taliban’s access to the biometric identification system for security and government personnel. These worries come at a time when there has been a surge in kidnapping incidents on main highways.
Some released hostages later told security officials the Taliban checked the fingers of every passenger and killed those identified as soldiers or policemen. The militant group also released images of some of the hostages in their custody and their photographs in military and police uniforms. This was an attempt to substantiate these were security personnel.
Taliban Spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid does not deny access to an identification system, but says he will not share details due to “security reasons”. He also claims some documents help them with the identification.
Biometric passports to be introduced in 2017
“We have a mechanism to identify our enemy,’ Mujahid replies when asked if the Taliban have the ability to fingerprint security officials.
Mujahid defends holding security men hostage as he claims they also nab people on the pretext of arresting Taliban on roads, markets and during raids on houses. However, there can be no justification for the militant group killing security officials when they are travelling in public transport and not engaged in the battlefield.
Unfortunately, Afghan security forces have also been accused of executions. There are a lot of videos posted online which show the execution of suspected Taliban members after their arrest. The sad part is that Kabul has never investigated these incidents despite video evidence.
Unsafe routes
The Taliban-coordinated kidnappings have sparked outrage in Afghanistan against the militant group and concerns are growing over the fact that security forces have failed to make these routes safe.
Militants abducted nearly 50 bus passengers from an area close to the northern Kunduz city and 17 on Wednesday. Leading channel Tolo TV quoted unnamed officials in the region as giving this information. Taliban also kidnapped about 200 people in the north last week.
Corporate corner: UBL, NADRA join hands for biometric transaction
The group’s activities in the northern areas of Afghanistan are a major concern for the Kabul administration and the insurgency is no longer limited only to the east and south. It has indeed spread north.
Making way
Afghan officials have come up with conflicting claims, some confirming the Taliban might have gained access to a biometric identification system after they briefly took Kunduz in 2015. However, others rule out such a possibility.
As the government and its security agencies come under severe criticism for allowing the Taliban to get its hands on the biometric system, Afghan Interior Ministry Spokesperson Sediq Sediqi denies militants have access.
“The biometric systems of the interior ministry and intelligence agencies are protected and no one, other than officials, can access it,” he told leading Pashto-language television channel Shamshad this week.
However, a senior police officer in the north has disputed Sediqi’s assertion.
Sher Aziz Kamawal, police commander in the north-east zone, was quoted by Tolo TV as saying hostages confirmed they were fingerprinted by Taliban during captivity.
He also confirms nine passengers killed by the Taliban on May 31 were military and police officers.
These tactics by the militants are seen as a new twist in their war strategy. It gives off the impression that they control main highways, especially in the northern parts which were previously considered more secure than the east and south.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 11th, 2016.
Concerns are rife in Afghanistan over the possibility of Taliban’s access to the biometric identification system for security and government personnel. These worries come at a time when there has been a surge in kidnapping incidents on main highways.
Some released hostages later told security officials the Taliban checked the fingers of every passenger and killed those identified as soldiers or policemen. The militant group also released images of some of the hostages in their custody and their photographs in military and police uniforms. This was an attempt to substantiate these were security personnel.
Taliban Spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid does not deny access to an identification system, but says he will not share details due to “security reasons”. He also claims some documents help them with the identification.
Biometric passports to be introduced in 2017
“We have a mechanism to identify our enemy,’ Mujahid replies when asked if the Taliban have the ability to fingerprint security officials.
Mujahid defends holding security men hostage as he claims they also nab people on the pretext of arresting Taliban on roads, markets and during raids on houses. However, there can be no justification for the militant group killing security officials when they are travelling in public transport and not engaged in the battlefield.
Unfortunately, Afghan security forces have also been accused of executions. There are a lot of videos posted online which show the execution of suspected Taliban members after their arrest. The sad part is that Kabul has never investigated these incidents despite video evidence.
Unsafe routes
The Taliban-coordinated kidnappings have sparked outrage in Afghanistan against the militant group and concerns are growing over the fact that security forces have failed to make these routes safe.
Militants abducted nearly 50 bus passengers from an area close to the northern Kunduz city and 17 on Wednesday. Leading channel Tolo TV quoted unnamed officials in the region as giving this information. Taliban also kidnapped about 200 people in the north last week.
Corporate corner: UBL, NADRA join hands for biometric transaction
The group’s activities in the northern areas of Afghanistan are a major concern for the Kabul administration and the insurgency is no longer limited only to the east and south. It has indeed spread north.
Making way
Afghan officials have come up with conflicting claims, some confirming the Taliban might have gained access to a biometric identification system after they briefly took Kunduz in 2015. However, others rule out such a possibility.
As the government and its security agencies come under severe criticism for allowing the Taliban to get its hands on the biometric system, Afghan Interior Ministry Spokesperson Sediq Sediqi denies militants have access.
“The biometric systems of the interior ministry and intelligence agencies are protected and no one, other than officials, can access it,” he told leading Pashto-language television channel Shamshad this week.
However, a senior police officer in the north has disputed Sediqi’s assertion.
Sher Aziz Kamawal, police commander in the north-east zone, was quoted by Tolo TV as saying hostages confirmed they were fingerprinted by Taliban during captivity.
He also confirms nine passengers killed by the Taliban on May 31 were military and police officers.
These tactics by the militants are seen as a new twist in their war strategy. It gives off the impression that they control main highways, especially in the northern parts which were previously considered more secure than the east and south.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 11th, 2016.