Taliban Lock Homes of Absent Owners in Kabul’s Omid-e-Sabz Township

DID Press: Local sources in Kabul say the Taliban’s Ministry of Justice has in recent days locked the homes of several absent owners in Omid-e-Sabz Township and ordered some families living in the properties to vacate them.

According to local sources, ministry officials have inspected homes in the township several times over the past week. In some cases, families were reportedly told to leave the properties and remove their belongings.

Sources told local media on Wednesday, September 30, that some families had been warned to vacate the homes because the residential units were allegedly due to be allocated to other people. Afghanistan International has separately reported similar accounts from residents and property owners in the township.

The reports say some homes belonging to owners living outside Afghanistan have been locked, while families residing in those properties face possible forced eviction. The Taliban’s Ministry of Justice has not publicly responded to the latest allegations.

The move comes after a Taliban special court ruled earlier this year that more than 1,507 jeribs of land in Omid-e-Sabz Township was state-owned. The Ministry of Justice said the land had been registered and surveyed in five cadastral parcels in the name of the state and had not been legally transferred to individuals or entities.

Residents and the township’s owner have disputed the decision, saying they possess ownership documents and legal records for the properties. Afghanistan International has reported that residents have called for a review of those documents.

The latest developments have raised concerns among residents over the legal status of their homes and property rights, particularly amid reports that some occupied houses could be transferred to other individuals.