Afghanistan’s Ismaili Shia community is enduring systematic and widespread persecution under Taliban rule, including forced conversions, restrictions on religious practices, harassment, and extrajudicial killings, according to a new report by UK-based human rights group Rawadari.
The report, The Human Rights Situation of Ismaili Shias in Afghanistan, draws on interviews with 25 victims, survivors, family members, civil society activists, and human rights defenders both inside and outside Afghanistan. It documents an alarming pattern of Taliban policies targeting the Ismaili community’s religious and cultural identity, as well as their exclusion from political, administrative, and social participation over the past four years.
Rawadari highlights that discrimination against Ismailis, historically present in Afghanistan, has become highly organized under the Taliban, affecting nearly every aspect of daily life. Children have been forcibly enrolled in Taliban-run Sunni madrassas, and families resisting these schools, particularly in Badakhshan, have faced fines, threats, torture, and the burning of homes and property.
The report documents coercion to abandon the Ismaili faith, including public accusations of apostasy, death threats, detention, and torture. Some community members were forced to convert to Sunni Islam, while in several areas, Ismaili religious practices were restricted or blocked. Residents were even compelled to participate in ceremonies of other Islamic sects.
Extrajudicial killings of prominent Ismaili figures have also been reported, with at least four deaths confirmed in recent years. Such actions have generated widespread fear and prompted some families to flee Afghanistan.
The Taliban have systematically removed Ismailis from positions of authority and decision-making. Many were dismissed from government posts due to their faith, while others concealed or changed their religion to retain employment. Numerous cases of discrimination and job loss were reported, leaving the community economically and socially marginalized.
Daily life for Ismailis has been heavily restricted. The report notes hate speech, public accusations of apostasy, verbal abuse by Taliban officials and religious preachers, restrictions on intermarriage, annulled unions, and refusal by some Afghans to eat food prepared by Ismailis. Property seizures, including land and gold mines, have further displaced families. Fifteen interviewees reported being forced from their homes due to harassment, discrimination, or violence.
Women in the Ismaili community face compounded discrimination on the basis of both gender and religion. They are denied access to religious education centers, and Taliban courts frequently dismiss their testimony. Eighteen interviewees said Ismaili women experience harsher and more layered discrimination than other Afghan women.
The report concludes that the scale, systematic pattern, and severity of abuses against Ismailis may constitute crimes against humanity. Rawadari called on the Taliban to end the violations immediately, urged the UN and international community to intervene, and encouraged media and human rights groups to continue documenting abuses.
Previous reports from UN experts, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom have similarly highlighted the Taliban’s eradication of religious freedom and widespread persecution of minorities. Despite this, the Taliban have consistently dismissed allegations of discrimination against religious minorities and women as “propaganda.”
This report underscores the Taliban’s ongoing campaign of religious oppression, coercion, and systematic human rights violations, revealing a pattern of abuse that has left Afghanistan’s Ismaili Shia community vulnerable, marginalized, and living in fear.
