For nearly a decade, Noora Hashimi, a 33-year-old lawyer worked as a prosecutor in Afghanistan. Her job, which entailed investigating cases of violence against women and children, gave her a deep sense of purpose and satisfaction.
“I worked very hard, day and night, to ensure that every person whose case I dealt with was treated fairly and justly,” Ms Hashimi told The National. “That no one was denied justice and those who didn’t commit any crime are not wronged.”
But today, Ms Hashimi – who asked for her name to be changed to protect her identity – is a hunted woman. Since the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in August 2021, she has received repeated threats to her life.
The threats are not solely from the militant group in power but also from several criminals she helped put behind bars who were later released by the Taliban when they took over the country.
“Many of those convicted did not accept their crimes and they would blame the lawyers and judges for their situation,” Ms Hashimi said. “But when the Taliban arrived, they released all prisoners, some of whom were very dangerous criminals, who are now seeking revenge against the prosecutors and judges.”
In previous years, the Attorney General’s office in Afghanistan was attacked by the Taliban several times. Ms Hashimi has survived assassination attempts, in which she lost two close colleagues. While she was no stranger to threats, she says that a lack of a functioning government in Afghanistan has left her and her family vulnerable to attacks from vengeful criminal groups.
For nearly two years, she has frequently changed her location in Afghanistan, in constant fear for her family’s life. “In that time, we have watched our colleagues get martyred,” she said.
Ms Hashimi’s claim was backed by the Association of Prosecuting Attorneys, a US-based organisation, campaigning for support of their Afghan counterparts.
“According to the data we have gathered, 28 prosecutors and their family members have been killed over the past two years,”Najia Mahmodi, former chief prosecutor in Afghanistan, and member of the Afghan chapter of the APA (called APA-AF) told The National. The NGO offers support to at-risk Afghan lawyers and judges in the country.
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