A gay man in Afghanistan was allegedly beaten, raped and outed to his family by the Taliban after they tricked him with an offer to help him flee.
After the Taliban seized control of Afghanistan last month, gay Afghans are living in fear of their lives.
The man, known under the pseudonym Hanan, was targeted by the Taliban after he tried to find a path to safety, ITV News reported.
Afghan activist Artemis Akbary, who is based in Turkey, told the outlet about the man’s experience.
He said it occurred after Hanan began talking to a man on social media who promised to help him to flee Afghanistan.
Hanan spoke to the man for three weeks before meeting him. However the meeting went horribly wrong when instead, two members of the Taliban confronted him.
The two men proceeded to beat and rape Hanan. They even demanded he give them his father’s phone number so they could call him and out Hanan.
Akbary explained to ITV News not to believe claims the Taliban will be more tolerant than its previous one.
He warned he believes social media now makes it easier for the Taliban to find and persecute LGBT+ Afghans.
“They’ll make a profile account and deceive LGBT+ people by pretending they’re a member of the community,” Akbary said.
“My friends in Afghanistan are scared.
“They don’t know what will happen to them in the future so they’re just trying to hide.”
Gay Afghanistan man says Taliban murdered his boyfriend
Last week, another gay man in Afghanistan claimed the Taliban murdered his partner and “cut his body into pieces” to “show him what they do with gay people”.
After the Taliban seized Kabul on August 15, he said he lost contact with his partner as both went into hiding.
He later found out from a friend the Taliban had murdered and mutilated his 24-year-old partner.
“Two cars came, with Taliban in it,” he said.
“They said, ‘Where is his home?’ and beat him so much.
“They took him away – nobody knows where – and then they kill him. Afterwards they brought [back] the body.
“I just want to leave this country, I don’t want to die.
“We deserve to live… Please, please, please, save us.”
Non-profits worldwide have urged governments to give refuge to queer Afghans.
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