Minorities | Hazara residents of Ghazni's Qarabagh district say the Taliban seized about 1,800 jeribs of their inherited farmland and leased part of it to a private firm

ACW | November 3, 2026 — Hazara residents of Qarabagh district in Afghanistan's Ghazni province say Taliban forces have seized about 1,800 jeribs of their private, inherited farmland, Hasht-e Subh reported on Tuesday.

The Taliban's agriculture and livestock department in Ghazni declared the land state property, the newspaper said. Hasht-e Subh said it had seen a document in which the department proposed leasing the land to a private company for farming, and the Taliban's agriculture ministry approved.

Residents said part of the land was handed over about two years ago for a township for Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and another part was leased out in the past month. They said they hold deeds, religious-court documents and tax receipts dating back to 1948.

Residents told the newspaper they had petitioned dozens of Taliban offices, including the ministries of agriculture, justice and vice and virtue, without a response. One of them described the seizure as clear discrimination against Hazaras.

No response from the Taliban authorities appeared in published reports.

Background: Etilaatroz reported on August 12, 2026, citing residents of the same areas, that the Taliban had labelled about 1,800 to 2,000 jeribs of their land state property without a court hearing and leased part of it. Hazara parties and groups have condemned forced displacement and land seizures; read ACW’s report.

Why it matters: The Taliban have seized hundreds of jeribs of land belonging to Shia communities in several provinces and, in the past month, closed a number of Shia educational, health, cultural and media institutions, Hasht-e Subh reported. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Afghanistan is a party, prohibits discrimination on the basis of religion (Article 26).

ACW will continue to follow this story.

Sources: Hasht-e Subh — Taliban confiscate 1,800 jeribs of Hazara land in Ghazni; Etilaatroz — Taliban lease private land in Ghazni’s Qarabagh

Map: Afghanistan Christian Watch