Arab Hunters Use Taliban Letter to Hunt Birds in Southern Afghanistan

Local sources in southern Afghanistan said a group of Arab hunters, carrying an official letter from the Taliban, hunted wild birds in recent days across the plains and mountains of Kandahar and Zabul provinces. The sources said on Saturday, 24 Aqrab, the group, numbering about 10 people and travelling in several vehicles, was seen in the districts of Daman, Arghistan and Meywand in Kandahar and in the Shahrsafa district of Zabul.

According to the reports, the hunters carried a hunting license from the Department of Environmental Protection and an official tourism document issued by the Taliban’s Ministry of Information and Culture. The reports say the hunters removed only the livers of the birds they killed and left the remaining meat in the field. The accounts also state that several Afghans accompanied the group to serve and provide protection.

The reports noted that, although the Taliban have formally banned hunting and have detained a number of people accused of violating that ban, foreign hunting groups travel to the southern provinces of Afghanistan each year. Local residents told reporters that after the Taliban retook control of Afghanistan and tourism routes for foreigners opened, the movement of such hunting groups has become easier.

The accounts provided no documentary evidence or named officials to verify the permits carried by the hunting group. The information is based on local sources and media reporting that this activity took place in the listed districts and on the practices described by witnesses.