Wardak

Parwan is Qari Baryal. Both are affiliated to the Peshawar Shura. (³⁸⁶) In a statement of August 2015, the Taliban said mullah Mohammad Nasim was the ‘Parwan In-charge’. (³⁸⁷)

A source in Kabul states: (³⁸⁸)

The Taliban in the province are constituted primarily by locals. In the mountainous Ghorband valley, Shinwari is a predominantly Pashtun district while Sia Gird [Ghorband] is a mixture of Pashtun and Tajiks. Koh-e-Safi district is located on the eastern part of the province with a Pashtun population (Koh-e-Safi). The presence of insurgents can be attributed to numerous factors: one is the perception of marginalization by the communities from the provincial government dominated by Jamiat-affiliated Tajiks which has contributed to the alliance of former HIG [Hezb-e Islami/Gulbuddin] commanders with Taliban; another is unresolved grievances and political divisions of past decades nurtured by key powerbrokers to further their political goals, an additional element, is the rural poverty of mountain valleys with deeply traditional and isolated communities sympathetic to religious fundamentalism, among other reasons.

There are reports of Islamic State (IS) infiltration and some activities in parts of Parwan such as Shinwari, Sia Gird [Ghorband] and Koh-e-Safi districts. In the past three months, reportedly the IS have enterred at least two times from the neighbouring Baghlan province to Sia Gird and Shinwari districts and have tried to expand their existence but reportedly have faced the resistance of some local AGE [Anti-Government Elements]. The provincial authorities however did not confirm these reports.

is divided into nine districts: Chak, Daymirdad, Hesae Awale Behsud, Jaghatu, Jalrez, Markaze Behsud, Maydanshahr, Nirkh, and Sayadabad. (³⁸⁹) The capital is the town of Maydan Shahr, which is located almost 35 kilometres west of Kabul city. (³⁹⁰)

The province is estimated to house 596,287 residents. (³⁹¹) The major ethnic groups living in Wardak Province are Pashtuns, followed by Tajiks and Hazaras. Wardak province also has a population of Kuchis or nomads whose numbers vary in different seasons. (³⁹²) During spring, Kuchi migrations regularly cause violent clashes in the predominantly Hazara Bihsud districts. (³⁹³)

The main KabulKandahar highway intersects the province through the districts of Maydan Shahr, Nirkh and Sayadabad.

A provincial road runs west from Maydan Shahr to Bamiyan through Jalrez and the districts of Hisai Awali Bihsud and Markaz-i Bihsud. (³⁹⁴)

Description of the violence

With its strategic proximity to Kabul, Wardak has experienced high levels of civilian casualties due to the conflict and exposure to mines and ERWs. The province has a lot of security incidents. (³⁹⁵) According to UNHCR, Wardak is one of the most unstable provinces of the central region. Insurgent influence is growing, leading to sustained confrontations with security forces. The districts of Chakh, Daymirdad and Nirkh are, according to UNHCR, particularly affected by the insurgency. (³⁹⁶) The provincial governor labelled Daymirdad, Jaghatu, Nirkh, Chak and Jalrez as volatile districts of the province. He also stated ‘although Behsud is a relatively calm district, there are disturbing questions about the rule of law there’. (³⁹⁷)

From 1 January to 31 August 2015, Wardak province counted 312 security incidents. Table 6 provides an overview of the nature of the security incidents: (³⁹⁸)

Violence targeting individuals 28 Armed confrontations and airstrikes 191

Explosions 66

Security enforcement 45

Total security incidents 312

Table 6: Security incidents by type, Wardak (Jan - Aug 2015)

The map in figure 8 presents the number of security incidents per district in Wardak province. (³⁹⁹)

From July 2015, there were heavy clashes in Jalrez when hundreds of insurgents overran several police posts on the Kabul-Bamiyan highway. (⁴⁰⁰) Twenty four ALP members were killed, and some of them were decapitated and burnt. (⁴⁰¹) Reportedly, security forces targeted also civilian houses in the fighting, leading to several civilian casualties. (⁴⁰²) A tribal elder abducted on the highway during the operation was killed. (⁴⁰³) After a 10-day operation, Afghan security forces claimed to have retaken all security posts, blaming all civilian casualties on roadside bombs. (⁴⁰⁴)

(³⁸⁹)  UNOCHA, AFGHANISTAN: Admin Level 3 Boundaries, 25 September 2012.

(³⁹⁰)  MRRD, Wardak Provincial Profile, n.d.; Pajhwok Afghan News, Background Profile of Maidan Wardak, n.d.

(³⁹¹)  UNOCHA, Afghanistan: Population estimate for 2015, 26 August 2015.

(³⁹²)  MRRD, Wardak Provincial Profile, n.d.

(³⁹³)  Landinfo, The conflict between Hazaras and Kuchis in the Beshud Districts of Wardak Province, 6 June 2011.

(³⁹⁴)  UNOCHA, Wardak Province District Atlas, 14 April 2014.

(³⁹⁵)  UNOCHA, 2015 Humanitarian Needs Overview Afghanistan, November 2014, p. 20.

(³⁹⁶)  UNHCR, Conflict-induced Internal Displacement Monthly Update, April 2015.

(³⁹⁷)  Pajhwok Afghan News, Effective security uplift plans drawn by Wardak governor, 8 August 2015.

(³⁹⁸)  For more information on the source of the data and the methodology, see introduction.

(³⁹⁹)  For more information on the source and the methodology of the maps, see introduction.

(⁴⁰⁰)  Pajhwok Afghan News, Hundreds of Taliban storm security posts in Jalrez district, 2 July 2015. Pajhwok Afghan News, 30 rebels, 18 ALP men dead in Jalrez fighting, 3 July 2015.

(⁴⁰¹)  Pajhwok Afghan News, Jalrez probe findings be made public soon: NSC, 26 August 2015.

(⁴⁰²)  Sarnavesht Daily, ‘Police target civilian houses in Jalrez’, 4 July 2015.

(⁴⁰³)  Pajhwok Afghan News, Tribal elder, 2 women killed in separate incidents, 13 July 2015.

(⁴⁰⁴)  Pajhwok Afghan News, Operation wrapped up in Jalrez, 10 rebels killed, 15 July 2015.

The Taliban commander responsible for the attack was later in July killed in a drone strike. (⁴⁰⁵) Civilian victims of the insurgents and family members of the slain ALP received compensation from the governor’s office and 6 security personnel were later fired because of negligence, as NDS had warned of an imminent attack shortly beforehand. (⁴⁰⁶)

Figure 8: Wardak, security incidents (Jan - Aug 2015)

According to a BBC report from October 2014 on Sayadabad’s Tangi valley, this area is firmly under Taliban control.

The Taliban collects taxes, runs the schools and maintains a rudimentary court system there. (⁴⁰⁷) In March 2015, gunmen opened fire on civilian vehicles on the highway through Saydabad, killing 13 passengers from a bus headed south. (⁴⁰⁸) This sparked a military operation in the district in which, among others, the son of the local Taliban commander responsible for the shooting was arrested. (⁴⁰⁹) After some village elders decided no one in their village was allowed to take part in anti-state activities, insurgents abducted them and several others after prayers in the mosque in July 2015. (⁴¹⁰) A landmine killed four children in July 2015. (⁴¹¹) During confrontations in Sayadabad in August 2015, four soldiers died. Several civilians were also killed and wounded when a rocket hit their house in different incidents in August. (⁴¹²)

In Nirkh, Taliban and Hezb-e Islami fighters are involved in a long-standing power struggle, often turning into open conflict. (⁴¹³) These confrontations have a serious impact on the local population, as UNHCR regularly mentions conflict and infighting between ‘anti-government elements’ as a reason for hundreds of families, or thousands of individuals, to flee the district. (⁴¹⁴)

In January 2015, officials claimed to have retaken Chak district from the insurgents. Chak was considered the insurgent headquarters for the past 13 years. The Taliban had set up several checkpoints in the district and ran a parallel judicial system. (⁴¹⁵) In July 2015, however, provincial council members claimed that half of all security posts in Chak district had fallen to insurgents. (⁴¹⁶) In March 2015, Chak’s district chief was abducted and killed in Saydabad. (⁴¹⁷) In June 2015, a local Taliban commander, some of his Afghan and foreign fighters, his wife and children were all killed when

(⁴⁰⁵)  Tolonews, Drone strike in Wardak kills 8 insurgents, including commander, 16 July 2015.

(⁴⁰⁶)  Pajhwok Afghan News, Bereaved Jalrez families provided with cash assistance, 4 August 2015; Pajhwok Afghan News, 6 security men accused of negligence in Jalrez carnage, 29 August 2015.

(⁴⁰⁷)  BBC, Afghanistan conflict: Life Inside a Taliban Stronghold, 20 October 2014.

(⁴⁰⁸)  RFE/RL, Official Say gunmen kill 13 in Afghan Highway Attack, 24 March 2015.

(⁴⁰⁹)  Tolonews, 15 Taliban insurgents held in Maidan Wardak, 31 March 2015.

(⁴¹⁰)  Pajhwok Afghan News, Taliban kidnap 8 civilians in Wardak mosque, 2 July 2015.

(⁴¹¹)  Pajhwok Afghan News, 4 children killed in Wardak mine blast, 16 July 2015.

(⁴¹²)  Pajhwok Afghan News, Dozens dead, wounded in Wardak, Zabul incidents, 10 Augustus 2015; Pajhwok Afghan News, Effective security uplift plans drawn, Wardak governor, 8 August 2015.

(⁴¹³)  Pajhwok Afghan News, Scores of dead, wounded in Hizb-e-Islami, Taliban clash, 17 June 2015.

(⁴¹⁴)  UNHCR, Conflict-induced Internal Displacement Monthly Update, November 2014; UNHCR, Conflict-induced Internal Displacement Monthly Update, February 2015; UNHCR, Conflict-induced Internal Displacement Monthly Update, June 2015.

(⁴¹⁵)  Tolonews, ANSF gain control of district Chack after 13 years, 28 January 2015.

(⁴¹⁶)  Tolonews, Fighting continues in Jalrez as Taliban seize several check points, 3 July 2015.

(⁴¹⁷)  Tolonews, Unknown gunmen kill Sayedabad district executive director, 6 March 2015.

a packed suicide vehicle prematurely went off inside their home in Chak. (⁴¹⁸) At the end of August 2015, insurgents entered the village of Ala-i Sang and burnt five houses, and beat the residents. One child was said to have been killed in the attack. (⁴¹⁹) Elders later complained about the security situation in their district, citing atrocities, robbing and harassment by both insurgents and security forces. Security forces also closed the road to the Alishai locality. (⁴²⁰) In May 2015, provincial capital Maidan Shahr saw a coordinated attack on the courthouse, in which several civilians were injured. (⁴²¹) In August 2015, an explosion targeted ANSF personnel (as they were shopping), wounding four though there were no civilian casualties. (⁴²²)

Several attacks on security posts led to ANSF and civilian casualties in Daymirdad and there were clashes in Jaghato and clearing operations in Daymirdad in August 2015. (⁴²³)

An ongoing problem independent of the clashes between insurgents and the government is the conflict between Kuchi nomads and Hazara villagers in both Behsud districts, and sometimes also Daymirdad. The conflict dates back many generations and is about access to summer pastures for the nomads. This year, two to four people were reported dead after clashes in Markaz-i Behsud in June 2015 and several houses were torched in Daymirdad in July. (⁴²⁴)

Displacement

In 2014, according to UNAMA, Wardak was one of the provinces with the highest levels of displacement ‘following an increase in activities of Anti-Government Elements that prompted the Afghan national security forces to launch military operations’. (⁴²⁵) In the first half of 2015, according to UNAMA, ‘displacement occurred continuously as a result of localised clashes and targeted attacks’. (⁴²⁶) In Wardak, about 5,400 individuals were displaced from January 2015 to July 2015, of which the majority moved from Sayadabad to Maydan Shahr. (⁴²⁷)

UNHCR mentions displacement from Wardak almost every month in the period from November 2014 to July 2015.

Wardak often features in the top 10 of IDP-affected provinces profiled by UNHCR. UNHCR regularly registered IDPs from rural Nirkh who sought shelter in the district centre and provincial centre Maidan Shahr; they fled armed clashes between insurgents and security forces, harassment and intimidation by insurgents, including restrictions of movement, and infighting between different insurgent groups. (⁴²⁸) In March 2015, UNHCR also identified hundreds of families from Saydabad and Jalrez in the provincial capital of Maidan Shahr. Although hosted by local communities, UNHCR said most IDPs needed humanitarian assistance. (⁴²⁹) In April 2015, UNHCR described a climate of insecurity and coercion by insurgent groups, prompting hundreds of families, or thousands of individuals, to flee, mainly from the districts of Chak, Nirkh and Daymirdad to the provincial centre Maidan Shahr and elsewhere. (⁴³⁰) While the provincial capital received most IDPs, 577 families, or 3876 individuals, fled from Maydan Shahr. This high number may partly be due to IDPs who experienced secondary displacement. (⁴³¹)

(⁴¹⁸)  Pajhwok Afghan News, Car bomb kills 6 inside Taliban leaders house, 11 June 2015.

(⁴¹⁹)  Pajhwok Afghan News, Taliban torch civilians houses in Maidan Wardak, 25 Augustus 2015.

(⁴²⁰)  Pajhwok Afghan News, Chak elders complain against Taliban security forces, 26 Augustus 2015.

(⁴²¹)  Tolonews, Suicide bomber and gunmen attack court building in Maidan Wardak, 26 May 2015.

(⁴²²)  Pajhwok Afghan News, Dozens dead, wounded in Wardak, Zabul incidents, 10 August 2015.

(⁴²³)  Pajhwok Afghan News, 2 civilians among four dead in Wardak clashes, 30 July 2015; Pajhwok Afghan News, Dozens dead, wounded in Wardak, Zabul incidents, 10 August 2015; Pajhwok Afghan News, Militants suffer heavy casualties, claim officials, 11 August 2015.

(⁴²⁴)  Pajhwok Afghan News, 2 dead as Hazara-Kuchi feud resurfaces in Wardak, 22 June 2015; Killid Group, ‘Clash between Kuchis, villagers takes toll (Dari)’, 12 July 2015; Pajhwok Afghan News, Taliban kidnap 8 civilians in Wardak mosque, 2 July 2015.

(⁴²⁵)  UNAMA, Afghanistan, Annual Report 2014, Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict, February 2015, p. 24.

(⁴²⁶)  UNAMA, Afghanistan, Midyear Report 2015. Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict, August 2015, p. 25.

(⁴²⁷)  UNOCHA, Afghanistan : Conflict-Induced Displacement (January to July 2015) as profiled by IDP taskforce and UNHCR, 16 September 2015.

(⁴²⁸)  UNHCR, Conflict-induced Internal Displacement Monthly Update, November 2014; UNHCR, Conflict-induced Internal Displacement Monthly Update, December 2014; UNHCR, Conflict-induced Internal Displacement Monthly Update, February 2015; UNHCR, Conflict-induced Internal Displacement Monthly Update, March 2015; UNHCR, Conflict-induced Internal Displacement Monthly Update, April 2015; UNHCR, Conflict-induced Internal Displacement Monthly Update, May 2015; UNHCR, Conflict-induced Internal Displacement Monthly Update, June 2015.

(⁴²⁹)  UNHCR, Conflict-induced Internal Displacement Monthly Update, March 2015.

(⁴³⁰)  UNHCR, Conflict-induced Internal Displacement Monthly Update, April 2015.

(⁴³¹)  Anonymous source specialised in security in Afghanistan, emails and briefing, July - September 2015.

Actors in the conflict

The provincial governor said there were 5,000 security personnel in Wardak compared to up to 1,500 insurgents. He also regretted the province had no army battalion of its own. The four ANA battalions in Wardak are operating under the Gardez-based brigade. (⁴³²) In August 2015, US drones performed air attacks in Daymirdad and Chakh districts. (⁴³³) The province experienced a series of local security problems. (⁴³⁴) In 2014, ALP staffing levels were reduced from 1,650 in seven districts to 975 in five districts, according to a source in Kabul, due to budgetary considerations. The ALP, like earlier initiatives, was plagued by ethnic and political problems, inadequate vetting procedures and lack of accountability. As a result, 258 ALP were dismissed in March 2012. According to the same source, there seems to be an improvement since, but issues of corruption and criminality among the ALP still need a lot of effort to eradicate. (⁴³⁵) International Crisis Group reports about continued abusive behaviour by ALP and the absence of a complaints mechanisms and accountability, e.g. in Chakh district. (⁴³⁶) According to a US Department of Defense report from April 2014, ALP is active in the districts of Seyedabad, Chakh, Nirkh, Jalrez and Maidan Shahr. (⁴³⁷) The Taliban shadow governor for Wardak is Qari Ahmadullah Mullahkhel, linked to the Peshawar Shura and former member of the Hezb-e Islami Gulbuddin Hekmatyar. (⁴³⁸) In a statement issued by the Taliban in August 2015, Mawlawi Ahmadullah Mansur is called ‘Wardak In-charge’. (⁴³⁹) According to Landinfo, rebels consist of local and regional Taliban groups, Hezb-e Islami and international groups of fighters. (⁴⁴⁰) In June 2015, the US Department of Defense reported that al Qaeda fighters, pushed out of their safe havens in Waziristan by a Pakistani military operation, started surfacing in Wardak, among other places, in the spring of 2015. (⁴⁴¹) Officials claimed Pakistani militants from Waziristan joined the insurgents when they overran several security posts in Jalrez in July 2015. (⁴⁴²) Since 2010, Taliban and Hezb-e Islami networks are fighting for control of Nirkh district. Despite ANSF support, Hezb-e Islami, though said by a Kabul source to be more locally embedded than the Taliban, has failed to curb Taliban control. (⁴⁴³) Violence escalated in Nirkh after foreign military forces pulled out of this province and the district gained notoriety when grave human rights abuses by American Special Forces and their Afghan aides surfaced in 2013. (⁴⁴⁴) According to an article from June 2015, fighting resumed after the Taliban received reinforcements from foreign fighters. (⁴⁴⁵)

(⁴³²)  Pajhwok Afghan News, Effective security uplift plan drawn, Wardak governor, 8 August 2015.

(⁴³³)  Pajhwok Afghan News, US drone strikes violence, leave 9 militants dead, 18 August 2015.

(⁴³⁴)  HRW, Just Don’t Call It a Militia, 12 September 2011.

(⁴³⁵)  International organisation, e-mail, 26 October 2014.

(⁴³⁶)  ICG, The Future of the Afghan Local Police, 4 June 2015, p. 10.

(⁴³⁷)  US Department of Defense, Report on Progress toward Security and Stability in Afghanistan, April 2014, p. 55.

(⁴³⁸)  UN Security Council, Letter dated 18 August 2015 from the Chair of the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 1988 (2011) addressed to the President of the Security Council, 26 August 2015, p. 20.

(⁴³⁹)  Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, Pledges of allegiance to the new Amir take place throughout Afghanistan, 9 August 2015.

(⁴⁴⁰)  Landinfo, Temanotat Afghanistan Sikkerhetsoppdatering, 9 January 2014, p. 10.

(⁴⁴¹)  US Department of Defense, Report on Enhancing Security and Stability in Afghanistan, June 2015, p. 25.

(⁴⁴²)  Tolonews, Jalrez situation virtually under control as forces retake posts, 4 July 2015.

(⁴⁴³)  International organisation, e-mail, 26 October 2014.

(⁴⁴⁴)  Aikins, M., The A Team Killings, Rolling Stone, 6 November 2013.

(⁴⁴⁵)  Pajhwok Afghan News, Scores of dead, wounded in Hizb-e-Islami, Taliban clash, 17 June 2015.