Sunsets and squalor: Inside Afghanistan's largest prisonWallpaper depicting tropical sunsets adorned the concrete walls of several cellsKABUL - Thousands of prisoners were crammed into a squalid prison to the east of Kabul last month until the Taliban set them free as they closed in on the capital. Taliban prisoners were also among those detained at the Pul-e-Charkhi -- as well as even more hardcore militants from the Islamic State group. Construction of Afghanistan's largest prison began in the 1970s, and in the decades since it has been criticised by human rights groups for its squalid and cramped conditions. A visiting area is riddled with bullet holes, where a last stand took place before the guards took flight. Mawlawi Abdulhaq Madani, a 33-year-old Taliban fighter now guarding the prison, is happy to see it empty.

Source: Bangkok Post September 17, 2021 05:48 UTC