Three Stories of Forced Marriage, Murder and Imprisonment Under Taliban Rule
Sorrya was ten years old when a local Taliban commander married her. After the first night of the marriage, the child was taken to hospital with severe bleeding.
In Jawzjan, Bibi Amina’s family opposed a marriage proposal from a Taliban official, leading to the killing of her father and brother. In Badghis, Bibi Sediqa has been imprisoned for nearly two years after refusing to accept the marriage claim of an influential Taliban-affiliated man.
This report tells the stories of three girls who have faced forced marriage, violence and pressure from influential Taliban figures. The cases indicate that some commanders and officials affiliated with the Taliban use their military, administrative and judicial power to force women and girls into marriage.
For this report, Zan News spoke with relatives of the families, a health worker and sources familiar with the cases. It also reviewed judicial documents related to Bibi Sediqa’s case. The identities of several sources have been withheld because of security concerns.
Sorrya, the Child Who No Longer Speaks
“Sorrya” is the pseudonym of a ten-year-old girl in Takhar. One of her relatives told Zan News that a local Taliban commander married Sorrya after threatening the family and paying around one million afghanis to the girl’s father.
According to the source, the Taliban commander was nearly five times Sorrya’s age. The family initially opposed the marriage, but the commander’s threats and the family’s financial circumstances left them unable to resist.
A health worker, who asked not to be identified because of security concerns, told Zan News that Sorrya was taken unconscious and suffering from severe bleeding to Takhar Provincial Hospital after the first night of the marriage. According to the health worker, the child had suffered injuries to her uterus and needed urgent care.
One of Sorrya’s relatives says the Taliban commander kept the child separated from her family for around three months. When Sorrya was returned home, she could barely stand or walk.
The consequences of the marriage were not only physical. Sorrya’s relative says the child’s behaviour changed completely after she returned.
The relative says: “She has changed greatly. She does not eat or speak. She is always quiet, and most of the time she suddenly screams and cries for no apparent reason.”
Bibi Amina, an Objection That Claimed Two Lives
Bibi Amina is a 15-year-old girl from Darzab district in Jawzjan. Two separate sources told Zan News that Qari Sharafuddin, the Taliban police chief in the district, wanted to marry her.
According to the sources, Bibi Amina’s family did not agree to his request. Their opposition had already led to threats and pressure before the incident.
On 7 March 2026, the Taliban official went to their home and attempted to take Bibi Amina away by force.
Bibi Amina’s father and brother resisted him. Both sources say the Taliban commander opened fire during the confrontation and killed them both.
One informed source confirmed the marriage proposal and the pressure exerted before the incident. A second source also confirmed the attempt to take the girl and the killing of her father and brother.
Bibi Sediqa, Imprisoned for Refusing a Marriage
Bibi Sediqa, a 17-year-old Turkmen girl from Badghis, has been held in a Taliban prison for nearly two years.
Judicial documents reviewed by Zan News show that the dispute began when Sediqa was around nine to eleven years old.
Khudai Nazar, an elderly man with three wives, claimed that Sediqa’s father had given her to him in marriage in exchange for settling a debt. Sediqa’s family rejects the claim.
Khudai Nazar previously served as a Taliban prison official and later worked for one of the group’s army corps in Herat.
According to the documents, Taliban courts of first instance initially ruled in Sediqa’s favour. The court did not consider the witnesses presented to prove the marriage valid and rejected the man’s claim.
However, after intervention by higher Taliban authorities, the direction of the case changed. Sediqa was arrested in 2024 and sentenced to five years in prison.
Her family says Sediqa’s release has been made conditional on her accepting marriage to Khudai Nazar. According to them, Sediqa has become ill in prison and her health is deteriorating.
Despite nearly two years of imprisonment, her answer has not changed.
According to Sediqa’s mother, her daughter said:
“Even if I die, I will not accept this marriage.”
The cases of Sorrya, Bibi Amina and Bibi Sediqa differ in their details, but they share one common element: the man seeking marriage holds power within the Taliban structure.
In Sorrya’s case, an armed commander used threats and money to force the family to accept the marriage. In Bibi Amina’s case, a Taliban official is accused of killing two members of her family after they opposed him. In Sediqa’s case, the influence of a former Taliban official extended into the judicial system, while the girl herself was imprisoned.
Under such conditions, a woman or girl’s consent is placed against weapons, official power, money and the courts. Refusal can lead to threats, violence, imprisonment or death.
The Taliban have previously claimed that forced marriage is prohibited and that a woman’s consent must be considered in marriage. However, these cases show a deep divide between the group’s official claims and the experiences of women who confront Taliban commanders and influential figures.
This comes as Taliban Decree No. 18, issued in May 2026, considers a girl’s silence after reaching puberty to be a sign of consent under certain conditions and recognises marriages arranged during childhood.
Since the Taliban returned to power on 15 August 2021, numerous reports have emerged of forced marriage, imposed polygamy and the abuse of women by armed and influential men.
