KABUL: The Taliban have replaced the statue of a Hazara leader declared a national martyr by the former government with a replica of the Qur'an, Bamiyan residents said Thursday — a move they warned could trigger violence.
The original statue depicted Abdul Ali Mazari, a leader of the mostly Shiite minority killed while he was a prisoner of the Taliban during their first stint in power.
The statue was decapitated by a rocket-propelled grenade soon after the Taliban returned to power in August, in an incident residents of the city in central Afghanistan blamed on the hard-line Islamists.
The Taliban’s strict interpretation of Islam forbids the human form to be depicted in paintings and sculpture — and printed photographs in extreme cases.
Many businesses have removed or covered up billboards and posters featuring people since the group’s takeover.
“Yesterday, they completely removed the statue and replaced it with a replica of the Qur'an,” said Abdul Danishyar, a civil society activist in Bamiyan.
“They are trying to wipe out the history from Bamiyan, the people are going to react violently to this,” he told AFP.
Mazari’s statue stood in Bamiyan’s central square, where the Taliban blew up two massive 1,500-year-old statues of Buddha in 2001 — just before the US invasion that ousted them.
The square, named after Mazari, has been renamed “military street,” Danishyar said.
Abdul Ali Shafaq, a Bamiyan provincial council member, told AFP he would talk to Taliban officials and urge them to reverse the move.
“This is a very sensitive issue, it might trigger reactions,” he said.
“People in Bamiyan love Mazari, they were making a new statue to replace the partially destroyed one.”
Mazari, a fiercely anti-Taliban militia leader, was killed in 1995 after being taken prisoner by the Taliban.
They said they shot him after he tried to seize the gun of one of his guards while being transferred aboard a helicopter.
He was officially named a “Martyr for National Unity of Afghanistan” by ousted president Ashraf Ghani in 2016.
The mainly Shiite Hazara community, which makes up about 10 percent of Afghanistan’s nearly 38 million people, has long been persecuted by Sunni extremists, such as the Daesh group, in a country torn by ethnic and religious divisions.
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Taliban replace statue of Hazara leader in Bamiyan with Qur'an
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Taliban replace statue of Hazara leader in Bamiyan with Qur'an
- The original statue depicted Abdul Ali Mazari, a leader of the mostly Shiite minority killed while he was a prisoner of the Taliban during their first stint in power
- The Taliban’s strict interpretation of Islam forbids the human form to be depicted in paintings and sculpture
Columbia student detained by ICE is abruptly released after Mamdani meets with Trump
- Ellie Aghayeva, an Azerbaijani, hasn’t been publicly linked to any of the pro-Palestinian demonstrations
- Mamdani asked Trump to drop cases against other students facing deportation for their roles in protests against Israel
NEW YORK: Federal immigration authorities arrested a Columbia University student early Thursday, triggering protests on campus along with allegations that agents had entered the university-owned residence under false pretenses.
Just hours after detaining student Ellie Aghayeva, though, the federal government abruptly reversed course, permitting her to walk free after an apparent intervention by President Donald Trump.
In a social media post Thursday afternoon, Mayor Zohran Mamdani said he expressed concerns about the arrest during an unrelated meeting with Trump, who then agreed to release her immediately.
“I am safe and okay,” Aghayeva wrote on Instagram, minutes after Mamdani’s post, adding she was in “complete shock” from the experience.
The head-spinning series of events marked the latest development to emerge from the Republican president’s unlikely relationship with a democratic socialist mayor he once threatened to have deported.
On Thursday, while pitching Trump on a massive housing project, Mamdani also called on the president to drop cases against several other current and former students facing deportation for their roles in protests against Israel.
Aghayeva, a senior from Azerbaijan studying neuroscience and politics, hasn’t been publicly linked to any of the pro-Palestinian demonstrations that roiled Columbia’s campus. A self-described content creator, she has amassed a large social media following by sharing day-in-the-life videos and tips for navigating college as an immigrant.
Early Thursday, federal agents gained entry to her apartment by claiming they were searching for a missing person, according to a petition from her lawyers and a statement released by Columbia. She quickly dashed off a message to her more than 100,000 followers on Instagram: “DHS illegally arrested me. Please help.” A photo accompanying the post appeared to show her legs in the backseat of a vehicle.
A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said Aghayeva’s student visa had been terminated in 2016 for failing to attend classes. Inquiries to Columbia about her visa status and how long she had been enrolled in the university were not returned.
In their petition, attorneys for Aghayeva said she had entered the country on a visa in or around 2016. They declined to provide additional comment, including details about her immigration status.
A spokesperson for DHS, Tricia McLaughlin, denied allegations levied by some state officials that agents had gained entry to her apartment by posing as New York City police officers. She didn’t respond to questions about whether they had claimed to be seeking a missing person.
The use of disguises or other misrepresentations by immigration authorities has drawn attention in recent months, after federal agents were seen posing as utility workers and other service employees in Minneapolis and elsewhere.
The practice is legal, in most cases. But immigration attorneys say such ruses are becoming increasingly common, adding to concerns about the Trump administration’s dramatic reshaping of immigration enforcement tactics nationwide.
In recent weeks, Trump has once again intensified his attacks on several universities, including Harvard and UCLA. The arrest would seem to mark the first federal enforcement action against at Columbia since the university agreed to pay more than $220 million to the administration over the summer.
“It’s a horrifying sign that the roving eye of the administration is turning back to Columbia,” said Michael Thaddeus, a mathematics professor at Columbia and vice president of the university’s chapter of the American Association of University Professors, which has sued Trump. “The idea that secret police would abduct and imprison students in our midst is something we’d expect from an authoritarian regime.”
Many students and faculty called on Columbia to increase protections for international students following the arrest last March of Mahmoud Khalil, a former graduate student and pro-Palestinian activist, whose deportation case remains ongoing.
In an email to the Columbia community Thursday, acting president Claire Shipman said that residential staff had been reminded not to allow federal law enforcement into university buildings without a subpoena or warrant.
“If you encounter or observe DHS/ICE agents conducting enforcement activities on or near campus, immediately contact Public Safety,” Shipman wrote. “Do not allow them to enter non-public areas or accept service of a warrant or subpoena.”
Just hours after detaining student Ellie Aghayeva, though, the federal government abruptly reversed course, permitting her to walk free after an apparent intervention by President Donald Trump.
In a social media post Thursday afternoon, Mayor Zohran Mamdani said he expressed concerns about the arrest during an unrelated meeting with Trump, who then agreed to release her immediately.
“I am safe and okay,” Aghayeva wrote on Instagram, minutes after Mamdani’s post, adding she was in “complete shock” from the experience.
The head-spinning series of events marked the latest development to emerge from the Republican president’s unlikely relationship with a democratic socialist mayor he once threatened to have deported.
On Thursday, while pitching Trump on a massive housing project, Mamdani also called on the president to drop cases against several other current and former students facing deportation for their roles in protests against Israel.
Aghayeva, a senior from Azerbaijan studying neuroscience and politics, hasn’t been publicly linked to any of the pro-Palestinian demonstrations that roiled Columbia’s campus. A self-described content creator, she has amassed a large social media following by sharing day-in-the-life videos and tips for navigating college as an immigrant.
Early Thursday, federal agents gained entry to her apartment by claiming they were searching for a missing person, according to a petition from her lawyers and a statement released by Columbia. She quickly dashed off a message to her more than 100,000 followers on Instagram: “DHS illegally arrested me. Please help.” A photo accompanying the post appeared to show her legs in the backseat of a vehicle.
A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said Aghayeva’s student visa had been terminated in 2016 for failing to attend classes. Inquiries to Columbia about her visa status and how long she had been enrolled in the university were not returned.
In their petition, attorneys for Aghayeva said she had entered the country on a visa in or around 2016. They declined to provide additional comment, including details about her immigration status.
A spokesperson for DHS, Tricia McLaughlin, denied allegations levied by some state officials that agents had gained entry to her apartment by posing as New York City police officers. She didn’t respond to questions about whether they had claimed to be seeking a missing person.
The use of disguises or other misrepresentations by immigration authorities has drawn attention in recent months, after federal agents were seen posing as utility workers and other service employees in Minneapolis and elsewhere.
The practice is legal, in most cases. But immigration attorneys say such ruses are becoming increasingly common, adding to concerns about the Trump administration’s dramatic reshaping of immigration enforcement tactics nationwide.
In recent weeks, Trump has once again intensified his attacks on several universities, including Harvard and UCLA. The arrest would seem to mark the first federal enforcement action against at Columbia since the university agreed to pay more than $220 million to the administration over the summer.
“It’s a horrifying sign that the roving eye of the administration is turning back to Columbia,” said Michael Thaddeus, a mathematics professor at Columbia and vice president of the university’s chapter of the American Association of University Professors, which has sued Trump. “The idea that secret police would abduct and imprison students in our midst is something we’d expect from an authoritarian regime.”
Many students and faculty called on Columbia to increase protections for international students following the arrest last March of Mahmoud Khalil, a former graduate student and pro-Palestinian activist, whose deportation case remains ongoing.
In an email to the Columbia community Thursday, acting president Claire Shipman said that residential staff had been reminded not to allow federal law enforcement into university buildings without a subpoena or warrant.
“If you encounter or observe DHS/ICE agents conducting enforcement activities on or near campus, immediately contact Public Safety,” Shipman wrote. “Do not allow them to enter non-public areas or accept service of a warrant or subpoena.”
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