In early October, a knock on the door of Murtuza Rezaie’s ancestral home in Afghanistan's Helmand province upturned his life.
“It was the Taliban fighters, and they told us to leave the house and hand it over to them,” the farmer, 26, told The National.
"We were given a few hours to leave and only allowed to take the bare essentials and nothing more. We were not even allowed to bring our livestock or crops."
He was speaking by phone from the outskirts of the provincial capital, where his family and other displaced Hazaras were camping temporarily.
“They gave no reason why we were being thrown out of our home but, knowing how brutal they can get, we were forced to leave,” he said.
Mr Rezaie's family is among 150 Hazara households that were forcibly displaced by the Taliban in Helmand. The ethnic minority, who are largely adherents of the Shia sect of Islam, have long faced persecution in Afghanistan.
Without proper shelter or assistance, their group is facing starvation, Mr Rezaie said.
“Right now we are roaming these mountains without food, water, or anything," he said.
"The nights are so cold. Our children are sick, and we already lost one baby to hunger this week. If we don’t get immediate support, we will very soon have more casualties.”
Since they seized power in August, the Taliban have forcibly displaced residents in Helmand and at least four other provinces.
Many of the raids have been aimed at the Hazara community, "as well as people associated with the former government", Human Rights Watch said in a report on Friday.
Apart from Helmand, the watchdog documented similar evictions in Uruzgan, Kandahar, Daykundi and Balkh.
“They have told many Hazaras and other residents in these five provinces to leave their homes and farms, in many cases with only a few days’ notice and without any opportunity to present their legal claims to the land,” HRW said.
Patricia Gossman, associate Asia director at HRW, said the Taliban are forcibly evicting Hazaras and others "on the basis of ethnicity or political opinion to reward Taliban supporters”.
“These evictions, carried out with threats of force and without any legal process, are serious abuses that amount to collective punishment,” she said.
While the Taliban deny the forced evictions, the hardline militants have a history of persecuting Hazaras.
Earlier this month, Amnesty International reported that Taliban forces unlawfully killed 13 Hazaras, most of them Afghan soldiers who had surrendered.
Khairullah Khairkhwa, the Taliban's acting minister of culture and information, said on Wednesday that “so far no one has been forcibly evicted from their home” by the group.
Any evictions that have take place "have been rooted in local disputes over property and these disputes can be resolved with the intervention of court order if needed,” he told reporters while attending talks in Moscow.
Mr Rezaie rejected the minister’s claim.
“We do not have any dispute within the villages or with anyone over property or land,” he insisted.
We are just as Helmandi as anyone else from this province; the only thing is that we are Hazaras
Murtuza Rezaie,
farmer evicted in Helmand
“Neither are we armed, and no one from our villages was even part of the previous government or security forces. We are just as Helmandi as anyone else from this province; the only thing is that we are Hazaras,” he said.
No other tribe or ethnic group in the region had been evicted, he said.
“This goes to show how much they dislike us,” he said.
Since the Taliban takeover, Hazaras have faced increased threats and attacks not just from the Taliban but also from the Afghan branch of ISIS. The extremist group claimed two suicide bombings this month at Shiite mosques in Kunduz and Kandahar that claimed more 120 lives.
“How can you blow up people when they are in God’s house, praying to the same God you believe in and practicing the same religion as you?” said Ali Hussain, 31, whose son was killed in the Kandahar attack.
“We have been targeted for decades irrespective of who is in power. I don’t know why being a Shia is a crime in Afghanistan. I watched my child vanish in blood in front of my eyes.”
In May, two of Mr Hussain's young cousins were killed in the bombing of a girls' school in a predominantly Hazara district of Kabul. While no group claimed responsibility, and the government blamed the Taliban, ISIS is known to have frequently aimed at the area.
Mr Hussain, who returned to Afghanistan from a refugee camp in Pakistan after the 2001-led invasion that toppled the Taliban's previous regime, is uncertain of his future now that the hardline group is back in power.
“I don’t want to leave again. Why should I have to leave just because I am Hazara. This is our country too, but we are only offered sorrow,” he said, breaking down in tears.
Mr Rezaie echoed his sentiment.
“We have lived in these mountains for decades, I was born and raised here, but now I’m homeless and the winter is upon us,” he said.
“We appeal to the Taliban and the international community to intervene. We don’t want anything except what is already ours.”
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Points about the fast fashion industry Celine Hajjar wants everyone to know
- Fast fashion is responsible for up to 10 per cent of global carbon emissions
- Fast fashion is responsible for 24 per cent of the world's insecticides
- Synthetic fibres that make up the average garment can take hundreds of years to biodegrade
- Fast fashion labour workers make 80 per cent less than the required salary to live
- 27 million fast fashion workers worldwide suffer from work-related illnesses and diseases
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Classification of skills
A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation.
A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.
The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
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How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
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- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
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The Farewell
Director: Lulu Wang
Stars: Awkwafina, Zhao Shuzhen, Diana Lin, Tzi Ma
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Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
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