Taliban’s brutal killing of comic actor Khasha sparks fear and loathing in Afghanistan

Short Url
Updated 30 July 2021
Follow

Taliban’s brutal killing of comic actor Khasha sparks fear and loathing in Afghanistan

  • Taliban claims without proof the Tik-Tok prankster had abused civilians in his job as a police officer in Kandahar
  • Mistreatment and murder of comedian raises fear of deliberate targeting of artists and performers

KABUL:  Until last week, Nazar Mohammad Khasha was an obscure Afghan prankster that few had heard of beyond his village in southern Kandahar. That was before he was dragged from his home, forced into the back of a vehicle and killed by the Taliban, acts that sparked an outpouring of anger across Afghanistan.

A video circulating on social media appears to show Khasha with his hands tied behind his back, squeezed into the back seat of a car between two men, one holding an assault rifle.

One of the men twice slaps Khasha full in the face for cracking a humiliating joke — quite possibly the last he ever told. Another man outside the frame barks: “Don’t let him go … strangle him.”

A second video published on social media appears to show Khasha’s motionless body lying on the ground, having been shot multiple times. A man lifts Khasha’s head to reveal his face, recognizable by his distinctive mustache.

The videos of Khasha’s abduction and murder have flooded the internet, igniting outrage across Afghanistan and overseas over the punishment meted out by the Taliban to a man well liked for the videos of his goofball charm filmed by villagers and posted on TikTok.

Afghanistan’s Tolo News reported that the 60-year-old left behind seven children. Saad Mohseni, the Afghan-Australian chairman of Moby Group, which owns Tolo News, expressed his revulsion at the execution in one word: “Horrific.”

Khasha’s routines, in which he would crack crude jokes, perform songs and poke fun at himself, had picked up a loyal following. His killing has led to fears of the targeting of artists and performers by the ultraconservative militants, long known to be intolerant of humor and free expression.




Afghan militia fighters keep a watch at an outpost against Taliban insurgents at Charkint district in Balkh Province on July 15, 2021. (Photo by FARSHAD USYAN / AFP)

In a statement on Wednesday, Hamid Karzai, Afghanistan’s former president, strongly condemned “the killing of Khasha by individuals related to the Taliban” and called it an act “against all human rights acts and orders of Islam.”

Mohsin Dawar, a prominent liberal Pakistani Pashtun lawmaker, said on Twitter: “A man who brought smiles to many was killed brutally for being who he was. The world watches as the Taliban continue with their atrocities against Afghans.”

In a Facebook post, Sarwar Danesh, Afghanistan’s second vice president, described Khahsa’s killing as “a slap in the face of all people of Afghanistan ... an insult against humanity and dignity,” and a violation of “justice, knowledge and art.”

Ross Wilson, the US charge d’affaires in Kabul, also condemned the killing. “Nazar Mohammad ‘Khasha’ was a beloved comedian, bringing laughter and joy to his community even in dark times,” he tweeted.

“The Taliban kidnapped and lynched him, then gleefully published video evidence on Twitter. We condemn these sickening actions and the Taliban leadership should too.”

 

 

The Taliban may have picked on Khasha for more than just his social media antics; he was also a police officer in Kandahar and a former soldier.

The group accepted responsibility for the murder after initially denying involvement, saying Khasha was not killed for his comedy routines but for alleged abusive treatment of civilians and collaboration with US forces. It has not produced any evidence to back up that claim.

Maryam Durrani, a prominent women’s rights activist in Kandahar, told Arab News that Khasha “was not a well-known, professional artist or comedian, but a village entertainer, about whom villagers made some short videos for fun.”

If Khasha was targeted in part for perceived affiliations with departing US forces, then Afghans who acted as interpreters and translators for the Western-backed Kabul government or US-affiliated organizations since 2001 many not be able to live freely without fear of reprisal from the Taliban.

Up to 18,000 Afghans who worked for the US military have applied for Special Immigration Visas to the US in recent months in the hope of escaping Taliban retribution. There is mounting public pressure on Western governments to evacuate Afghans who worked with their forces.




Afghan families gather at a refugee camp in Kandahar after fleeing their homes amid fighting between  Taliban and government security forces on July 27, 2021. (Photo by Aved Tanveer/AFP)

Khasha served for many years as a member of a local police force in Kandahar, but information about his relationship with the community in that capacity is scarce.

Local police in Kandahar historically have a bad reputation for abuses and atrocities against civilians in their fight against militants, including attacks prompted by tribal rivalries, extortion and other crimes.

A series of older videos and images online appear to show Khasha carrying assault rifles on various occasions.

Zabihullah Mujahid, a Taliban spokesman, confirmed that Khasha was arrested by the group’s fighters and killed while in its custody, but claimed that he tried to snatch a gun, adding that the incident would be investigated.

“He had served for 18 years as a commander for a post, carried arms, worked with the US and was involved in extortion and brutal acts. He was not a comedian nor an innocent person. We are also investigating why he was killed without a trial,” Mujahid told Arab News.




In the words of Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, Kandahar comic Khasha was killed when he snatched a gun from his captors. (AFP photo)

Khasha’s killing follows government allegations that the Taliban has murdered scores of people from one tribe in the Spin Boldak area of Kandahar, where the militants have made inroads since US-led forces began reducing their troop presence in May.

The Taliban denies it is committing such abuses and says it will allow an international investigation. However, reports emerging from areas overrun by the group in recent months tell a different story.

The Taliban is making rapid advances across the country, capitalizing on the final withdrawal of foreign troops — capturing districts, seizing key border crossings, and encircling provincial capitals.

As US and NATO forces leave, people within and outside Afghanistan have voiced concern about the cohesion of the country in the wake of soaring ethnic and tribal tensions, waves of troop surrenders and a weakened central government.

According to US defense officials, the Taliban has taken control of about half of the country’s districts.

In some areas the group is again introducing its harsh interpretation of Islamic rule that earned it notoriety until it was overthrown by the US-led invasion that followed the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.




In areas controlled by the Taliban, women are required to wear burqas, with no exception. (Photo by Sajjad Hussain / AFP)

In the areas it has retaken, schools have allegedly been burned to the ground and restrictions placed on the liberties of women, akin to those imposed on communities when the group ruled Afghanistan between 1996 and 2001.

During those years, women were ordered to stay indoors unless accompanied by a male guardian, girls were banned from school, and those found guilty of crimes such as adultery were stoned to death.

Men had more freedom but were ordered not to shave their beards, would be beaten if they failed to attend prayers, and were told to only wear traditional clothing.

Afghanistan is deeply conservative and some rural pockets of the country adhere to similar rules even without Taliban oversight — but the group has tried to impose these edicts even in more modern centers.

The Taliban insist they will protect human rights — particularly those of women — but only according to “Islamic values,” which are interpreted differently across the Muslim world.

 


President Donald Trump says Russian leader Vladimir Putin ‘has gone absolutely CRAZY!’

Updated 20 min 49 sec ago
Follow

President Donald Trump says Russian leader Vladimir Putin ‘has gone absolutely CRAZY!’

  • Says Putin is “needlessly killing a lot of people,” pointing to Russia's escalating missile and drone attacks on Ukraine
  • Warns that if Putin wants to conquer all of Ukraine, it will “lead to the downfall of Russia!”

WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump made it clear he is losing patience with Vladimir Putin, leveling some of his sharpest criticism at the Russian leader as Moscow pounded Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities with drones and missiles for a third straight night.
“I’ve always had a very good relationship with Vladimir Putin of Russia, but something has happened to him. He has gone absolutely CRAZY!” Trump wrote in a social media post on Sunday night.
Trump said Putin is “needlessly killing a lot of people,” pointing out that “missiles and drones are being shot into Cities in Ukraine, for no reason whatsoever.”
The attack was the largest aerial assault since Russia’s full-scale invasion of the country in February 2022, according to Ukrainian officials. At least 12 people were killed and dozens injured.

The US president warned that if Putin wants to conquer all of Ukraine, it will “lead to the downfall of Russia!” But Trump expressed frustration with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as well, saying that he is “doing his Country no favors by talking the way he does.”
“Everything out of his mouth causes problems, I don’t like it, and it better stop,” Trump wrote on social media.
The president has increasingly voiced irritation at Putin and the inability to resolve the now three-year-old war, which Trump promised he would promptly end as he campaigned to return to the White House.
He had long boasted of his friendly relationship with Putin and repeatedly stressed that Russia is more willing than Ukraine to reach a peace deal.
But last month, Trump urged Putin to “STOP!” assaulting Ukraine after Russia launched another deadly barrage of attacks on Kyiv, and he has repeatedly expressed his frustration that the war in Ukraine is continuing.
“I’m not happy with what Putin’s doing. He’s killing a lot of people. And I don’t know what the hell happened to Putin,” Trump told reporters earlier Sunday as he departed northern New Jersey, where he spent most of the weekend. “I’ve known him a long time, always gotten along with him, but he’s sending rockets into cities and killing people and I don’t like it at all. ”
A peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine remains elusive. Trump and Putin spoke on the phone this past week, and Trump announced after the call that Russia and Ukraine will “immediately” begin ceasefire talks. That conversation occurred after Russian and Ukrainian officials met in Turkiye for the first face-to-face talks since 2022. But on Thursday, the Kremlin said no direct talks were scheduled.
The European Union has slapped new sanctions on Russia this month in response to Putin’s refusal to agree to a ceasefire. But while Trump has threatened to step up sanctions and tariffs on Russia, he hasn’t acted so far.


US Justice Department reaches deal to allow Boeing to avoid prosecution over 737 Max crashes

Updated 26 May 2025
Follow

US Justice Department reaches deal to allow Boeing to avoid prosecution over 737 Max crashes

  • Under the agreement announced Friday, Boeing must retain an “independent compliance consultant” who will make recommendations for “further improvement”

WASHINGTON: The Justice Department has reached a deal with Boeing that will allow the airplane giant to avoid criminal prosecution for allegedly misleading US regulators about the 737 Max jetliner before two of the planes crashed and killed 346 people, according to court papers filed Friday.
Under the “agreement in principle,” which still needs to be finalized, Boeing would pay or invest more than $1.1 billion, including an additional $445 million for the crash victims’ families, the Justice Department said.
In return, the department has agreed to dismiss the fraud charge against Boeing, allowing the manufacturer to avoid a possible criminal conviction that could have jeopardized the company’s status as a federal contractor, according to experts.
“Ultimately, in applying the facts, the law, and Department policy, we are confident that this resolution is the most just outcome with practical benefits,” a Justice Department spokesperson said in a statement.
“Nothing will diminish the victims’ losses, but this resolution holds Boeing financially accountable, provides finality and compensation for the families and makes an impact for the safety of future air travelers.”
Boeing on Friday declined to comment.
Some relatives of the passengers who died in the crashes, which took place off the coast of Indonesia and in Ethiopia less than five months apart in 2018 and 2019, have been pushing for a public trial, the prosecution of former company officials, and more severe financial punishment for Boeing. The Justice Department noted that the victims’ families had mixed views on the proposed deal.
“This kind of non-prosecution deal is unprecedented and obviously wrong for the deadliest corporate crime in US history,” said Paul Cassell, an attorney for many of the families in the long-running case. “My families will object and hope to convince the court to reject it.”
Javier de Luis, whose sister, Graziella, died in the Ethiopia crash, said the Justice Department is walking away “from any pretense to seek justice for the victims of the 737Max crashes.”
“The message sent by this action to companies around the country is, don’t worry about making your products safe for your customers,” he said in a statement. “Even if you kill them, just pay a small fine and move on.”
Boeing was accused of misleading the Federal Aviation Administration about aspects of the Max before the agency certified the plane for flight. Boeing did not tell airlines and pilots about a new software system, called MCAS, that could turn the plane’s nose down without input from pilots if a sensor detected that the plane might go into an aerodynamic stall.
The Max planes crashed after a faulty reading from the sensor pushed the nose down and pilots were unable to regain control. After the second crash, Max jets were grounded worldwide until the company redesigned MCAS to make it less powerful and to use signals from two sensors, not just one.
The Justice Department charged Boeing in 2021 with deceiving FAA regulators about the software, which did not exist in older 737s, and about how much training pilots would need to fly the plane safely. The department agreed not to prosecute Boeing at the time, however, if the company paid a $2.5 billion settlement, including the $243.6 million fine, and took steps to comply with anti-fraud laws for three years.
Federal prosecutors, however, last year said Boeing violated the terms of the 2021 agreement by failing to make promised changes to detect and prevent violations of federal anti-fraud laws. Boeing agreed last July to plead guilty to the felony fraud charge instead of enduring a potentially lengthy public trial.
But in December, US District Judge Reed O’Connor in Fort Worth rejected the plea deal. The judge said the diversity, inclusion and equity, or DEI, policies in the government and at Boeing could result in race being a factor in picking a monitor to oversee Boeing’s compliance with the agreement.
The plea deal had called for an independent monitor to be named to oversee Boeing’s safety and quality procedures for three years. Under the agreement announced Friday, Boeing must retain an “independent compliance consultant” who will make recommendations for “further improvement” and report back to the government, according to court papers.


Scientists have lost their jobs or grants in US cuts. Foreign universities want to hire them

Updated 26 May 2025
Follow

Scientists have lost their jobs or grants in US cuts. Foreign universities want to hire them

  • Already, several universities have announced hiring freezes, laid off staff or stopped admitting new graduate students

As the Trump administration cut billions of dollars in federal funding to scientific research, thousands of scientists in the US lost their jobs or grants — and governments and universities around the world spotted an opportunity.
The “Canada Leads” program, launched in April, hopes to foster the next generation of innovators by bringing early-career biomedical researchers north of the border.
Aix-Marseille University in France started the “Safe Place for Science” program in March — pledging to “welcome” US-based scientists who “may feel threatened or hindered in their research.”
Australia’s “Global Talent Attraction Program,” announced in April, promises competitive salaries and relocation packages.
“In response to what is happening in the US,” said Anna-Maria Arabia, head of the Australian Academy of Sciences, “we see an unparalleled opportunity to attract some of the smartest minds here.”
Since World War II, the US has invested huge amounts of money in scientific research conducted at independent universities and federal agencies. That funding helped the US to become the world’s leading scientific power — and has led to the invention of cell phones and the Internet as well as new ways to treat cancer, heart disease and strokes, noted Holden Thorp, editor-in-chief of the journal Science.
But today that system is being shaken.
Since President Donald Trump took office in January, his administration has pointed to what it calls waste and inefficiency in federal science spending and made major cuts to staff levels and grant funding at the National Science Foundation,the National Institutes of Health, NASA and other agencies, as well as slashing research dollars that flow to some private universities.
The White House budget proposal for next year calls to cut the NIH budget by roughly 40 percent and the National Science Foundation’s by 55 percent.
“The Trump administration is spending its first few months reviewing the previous administration’s projects, identifying waste, and realigning our research spending to match the American people’s priorities and continue our innovative dominance,” said White House spokesperson Kush Desai.
Already, several universities have announced hiring freezes, laid off staff or stopped admitting new graduate students. On Thursday, the Trump administration revoked Harvard University’s ability to enroll international students, though a judge put that on hold.
Research institutions abroad are watching with concern for collaborations that depend on colleagues in the US — but they also see opportunities to potentially poach talent.
“There are threats to science ... south of the border,” said Brad Wouters, of University Health Network, Canada’s leading hospital and medical research center, which launched the “Canada Leads” recruitment drive. “There’s a whole pool of talent, a whole cohort that is being affected by this moment.”
Promising a safe place to do science
Universities worldwide are always trying to recruit from one another, just as tech companies and businesses in other fields do. What’s unusual about the current moment is that many global recruiters are targeting researchers by promising something that seems newly threatened: academic freedom.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said this month that the European Union intends “to enshrine freedom of scientific research into law.” She spoke at the launch of the bloc’s “Choose Europe for Science” — which was in the works before the Trump administration cuts but has sought to capitalize on the moment.
Eric Berton, president of Aix-Marseille University, expressed a similar sentiment after launching the institution’s “Safe Place for Science” program.
“Our American research colleagues are not particularly interested by money,” he said of applicants. “What they want above all is to be able to continue their research and that their academic freedom be preserved.”
Too early to say ‘brain drain’
It’s too early to say how many scientists will choose to leave the US It will take months for universities to review applications and dole out funding, and longer for researchers to uproot their lives.
Plus, the American lead in funding research and development is enormous — and even significant cuts may leave crucial programs standing. The US has been the world’s leading funder of R&D — including government, university and private investment — for decades. In 2023, the country funded 29 percent of the world’s R&D, according to the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
But some institutions abroad are reporting significant early interest from researchers in the US Nearly half of the applications to “Safe Place for Science” — 139 out of 300 total — came from US-based scientists, including AI researchers and astrophysicists.
US-based applicants in this year’s recruitment round for France’s Institute of Genetics, Molecular and Cellular Biology roughly doubled over last year.
At the Max Planck Society in Germany, the Lise Meitner Excellence Program — aimed at young female researchers — drew triple the number of applications from US-based scientists this year as last year.
Recruiters who work with companies and nonprofits say they see a similar trend.
Natalie Derry, a UK-based managing partner of the Global Emerging Sciences Practice at recruiter WittKieffer, said her team has seen a 25 percent to 35 percent increase in applicants from the US cold-calling about open positions. When they reach out to scientists currently based in the US, “we are getting a much higher hit rate of people showing interest.”
Still, there are practical hurdles to overcome for would-be continent-hoppers, she said. That can include language hurdles, arranging childcare or eldercare, and significant differences in national pension or retirement programs.
Community ties
Brandon Coventry never thought he would consider a scientific career outside the United States. But federal funding cuts and questions over whether new grants will materialize have left him unsure. While reluctant to leave his family and friends, he’s applied to faculty positions in Canada and France.
“I’ve never wanted to necessarily leave the United States, but this is a serious contender for me,” said Coventry, who is a postdoctoral fellow studying neural implants at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
But it’s not easy to pick up and move a scientific career — let alone a life.
Marianna Zhang was studying how children develop race and gender stereotypes as a postdoctoral fellow at New York University when her National Science Foundation grant was canceled. She said it felt like “America as a country was no longer interested in studying questions like mine.”
Still, she wasn’t sure of her next move. “It’s no easy solution, just fleeing and escaping to another country,” she said.
The recruitment programs range in ambition, from those trying to attract a dozen researchers to a single university to the continent-wide “Choose Europe” initiative.
But it’s unclear if the total amount of funding and new positions offered could match what’s being shed in the US.
A global vacuum
Even as universities and institutes think about recruiting talent from the US, there’s more apprehension than glee at the funding cuts.
“Science is a global endeavor,” said Patrick Cramer, head of the Max Planck Society, noting that datasets and discoveries are often shared among international collaborators.
One aim of recruitment drives is to “to help prevent the loss of talent to the global scientific community,” he said.
Researchers worldwide will suffer if collaborations are shut down and databases taken offline, scientists say.
“The US was always an example, in both science and education,” said Patrick Schultz, president of France’s Institute of Genetics, Molecular and Cellular Biology. So the cuts and policies were “very frightening also for us because it was an example for the whole world.”


Trump says he will delay EU tariffs until July 9

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) at the opening bell on May 23, 2025, in New York City. (AFP)
Updated 26 May 2025
Follow

Trump says he will delay EU tariffs until July 9

  • In early April, Trump had set a 90-day window for trade talks for the EU and the US which was to end on July 9

MORRISTOWN, New Jersey: US President Donald Trump on Sunday backed off his threat to speed up 50 percent tariffs on imports from the European Union, agreeing to extend his deadline for trade talks until July 9 after the head of the EU executive body said the bloc needed more time to “reach a good deal.”
Trump threatened on Friday to intensify his trade war after expressing frustrations that trade talks were not moving quickly enough, saying he wanted steep new import taxes to start on June 1. The threat roiled global markets.
Trump relented after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told him during a phone call that the EU needed more time to come to an agreement and asked him to delay the tariffs until July, the deadline he had originally set when he announced new tariffs in April.
Trump told reporters on Sunday that he had granted the request. He said that von der Leyen told him “we will rapidly get together to see if we can work something out.” Von der Leyen said in a social media post that the EU was ready to move quickly in trade talks.
Von der Leyen said in a post on X on Sunday that she had a “good” phone call with Trump.
In early April, Trump had set a 90-day window for trade talks for the EU and the US which was to end on July 9.

 


Trump says US wants to make tanks, not T-shirts

Updated 26 May 2025
Follow

Trump says US wants to make tanks, not T-shirts

  • “We’re not looking to make sneakers and T-shirts. We want to make military equipment. We want to make big things. We want to do the AI thing with computers,” Trump said

MORRISTOWN, New Jersey: US President Donald Trump said on Sunday his tariff policy was aimed at promoting the domestic manufacturing of tanks and technology products, not sneakers and T-shirts.
Speaking to reporters before boarding Air Force One in New Jersey, Trump said he agreed with comments from Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on April 29 that the US does not necessarily need a “booming textile industry” — comments that drew criticism from the National Council of Textile Organizations.
“We’re not looking to make sneakers and T-shirts. We want to make military equipment. We want to make big things. We want to do the AI thing with computers,” Trump said.
“I’m not looking to make T-shirts, to be honest. I’m not looking to make socks. We can do that very well in other locations. We are looking to do chips and computers and lots of other things, and tanks and ships,” Trump said.
Trump, who has upended world markets with the broad imposition of tariffs, revived his harsh trade rhetoric on Friday when he pushed for a 50 percent tariff on European Union goods starting June 1 and warned Apple he may impose a 25 percent levy on all imported iPhones bought by US consumers.