Afghanistan: Gay Man ‘Raped And Beaten’ By Taliban After He Was Tricked Into Meeting Them
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Concerns for LGBTQ+ Afghans are mounting after a gay man was reported to have been lured into a trap to be ‘raped and beaten’ by Taliban soldiers.
The man had reportedly been looking for a way to escape Afghanistan when he agreed to meet a man he had spoken to online who promised to help him. However, upon arriving at the meeting point, he was attacked by two Taliban fighters who also threatened to out him to his father.
‘Two people raped him, they beat him, and then demanded his father’s number so they could tell him his son was gay,’ exiled LGBTQ+ activist Artemis Akbary told ITV News, adding that while the man had survived, he was now hiding his identity amid fear of further persecution.
Akbary claimed that attempts to entrap LGBTQ+ Afghans were become more common, saying ‘they’ll make a profile account and deceive LGBT+ people by pretending they’re a member of the community’.
‘My friends in Afghanistan are scared, they don’t know what will happen to them in the future so they’re just trying to hide….[the Taliban] are trying to tell the world ‘we are changed and we don’t have problems with women’s rights or human rights’ – but they are lying.’
As ITV News reports, even under the previous regime people caught in same-sex relationships could be sentenced to prison. However, punishments under the Taliban are likely to be even more severe and brutal.
As international governments raced to get their citizens and vulnerable Afghans out of the country, LGBTQ+ charities Stonewall and Rainbow Road wrote to the government asking them to help evacuate LGBTQ+ Afghans ‘who are at extreme risk of torture and death at the hands of the Taliban and are already in fear of their lives’.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact the LGBT Foundation on 0345 3 30 30 30, 10am–6pm Monday to Friday, or email [email protected]
Topics: News, Afghanistan, LGBTQ+ Rights, Now, Taliban
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