SECURITY — June 19, 2026
Former Afghan Army Commander Hesmatullah Found Murdered in Kapisa Province
His tortured body was discovered four days after being abducted from his farm in Parwan's Jabal al-Saraj district, and he was buried in his hometown after previously being detained and released by the Taliban.
The Ehtebar Desk — originates with Afghanistan International — 2 min read
Hesmatullah, a former commander in the Afghan army, was abducted while working on his farm in the Jabal al-Saraj district of Parwan province. Four days later, his body was recovered from a site next to a river in the neighboring Kapisa province. The discovery occurred on 29 Jawza, and the remains showed clear signs of torture, including gouged-out eyes.
Hesmatullah had previously been detained briefly by Taliban forces after the fall of the republic. He was released after signing a written pledge and subsequently fled to Iran. He later returned to Afghanistan, where he lived as a civilian and engaged in farming without any military activities.
The body was transferred from Kapisa and buried on Friday in Jabal al-Saraj district. Local Taliban officials in Parwan province have not issued any comments on the murder.
Read the original reporting at Afghanistan International →
Reliability assessment
Single source provides direct reporting with concrete, checkable details including specific districts, dates (29 Jawza), locations (river in Kapisa), and attribution to relatives plus obtained images; no contradictions from other sources
The source language mixes facts with framing or advocacy wording. Afghanistan International: "brutally murdered", "brutal murder", "revenge, arbitrary arrests, torture and killing", "targeted assassinations" - these phrases emotionally frame the events as systematic and horrific while using advocacy language to criticize the amnesty as a mere "political cover".
Independent web corroboration
An independent web search turned up no separate corroborating reports. Treat the account as single-sourced until more outlets pick it up.
Across the newsrooms
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Afghanistan International
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Framed
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Security — Hesmatullah, Parwan, Jabal al-Saraj, Kapisa, Taliban
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