The deportation of Commander Zardad Faryadi from the United Kingdom to Afghanistan on December 14, poses a clear danger for witnesses who testified against the former warlord in his 2005 conviction for torture and hostage taking, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a statement on Friday. 

The watchdog called on the UK government to take immediate measures to protect witnesses, including by expediting asylum procedures and relocation outside Afghanistan. 

The organization called on the Afghan government to impose parole restrictions on Zardad and the UK and Afghan authorities should scrupulously monitor his compliance in order to protect those witnesses who remain in Afghanistan.

“Zardad’s trial and conviction in the UK was a landmark case – demonstrating that torturers cannot find safe haven by fleeing to another country,” said Patricia Gossman, senior researcher on Afghanistan at Human Rights Watch. “But by failing to take measures to protect witnesses, the UK government risks betraying those who made that conviction possible. They owe it to them to take immediate steps to protect those most at risk.”

"Those who testified at Zardad’s trial have expressed concerns for the safety of witnesses and their families. Some witnesses learned of Zardad’s imminent arrival only days before he returned," she said. 

According to the statement, Zardad, who was prosecuted by UK authorities under English law implementing the Convention against Torture, for the crimes of hostage taking and torture committed in Afghanistan in the 1990s, was recently paroled after serving 11 years of a 20-year prison sentence. He arrived in Kabul on December 14, and was reportedly taken into custody by the National Directorate of Security (NDS). A crowd of supporters, at least one armed, assembled inside the security perimeter of the airport carrying signs welcoming him home as a hero.

 “Relocation of witnesses outside the country is likely to be the only way to protect those most at risk of reprisals,” Gossman added.