Two journalists covering protests in the Afghan capital, Kabul, were severely tortured by the Taliban after a long detention.
The two journalists were picked up during a protest Wednesday and taken to a Kabul police station, where they were beaten with sticks, electric wires and whips, according to AFP.
"One of the Taliban put his foot on my head and pressed my face against the concrete, kicked me in the head, I thought they would kill me," photographer Nematullah Naqdi told AFP.
Taliban officials did not respond to repeated requests from AFP.
Despite promises of a comprehensive government, the Taliban are resorting to violence to quell growing opposition to their new government, according to the report.
He said in a statement on Wednesday night that the protests were illegal unless permission was obtained from the Ministry of Justice.
Nematullah and his fellow reporter Taqi Daryabi both work for Information Day and were given coverage of a small protest at the police station where women were demanding the right to work and education.
Nematullah added that as soon as he started taking pictures, he was recognized by a Taliban official.
"The Taliban told me you couldn't make a film and arrested all the filmmakers and took their phones," he said.
The photographer said the Taliban tried to grab his camera but managed to hand it over to someone in the crowd, but three Taliban fighters grabbed him and took him to the police station, where they began beating him.
'They consider us enemies'
"The Taliban made fun of me and kicked me. When I asked them why they were killing me, they just said that you were lucky that you were not beheaded," Namatullah Naqdi said.
He was eventually taken to a crowded cell where his comrade Taqi Daryabi was also present and was also tortured after his arrest.
"We were in so much pain that we couldn't even move," Taqi Daryabi said.
A few hours later, the two fellow journalists were released without explanation.
The Taliban have claimed that they will uphold freedom of the press in accordance with Islamic principles, but on the contrary, journalists covering the protests are being tortured across the country.
Dozens of journalists have been reported killed, detained or prevented from covering protests in recent days, most of them Afghan journalists, who are more harassed by the Taliban than foreign media.
"The Taliban's words are hollow claims, this official speech is completely different from the ground realities," Zaki Daryabi, editor of the Information Daily newspaper, told AFP.
On the other hand, the Committee to Protect Journalists has called on the Taliban to immediately end the detention of journalists in Afghanistan, renounce violence against them and allow the media to operate freely and without retaliation.
In a statement, the Committee to Protect Journalists said the Taliban detained and later released at least 14 journalists covering protests in Kabul.
He cited sources as saying that at least six of them were tortured during their arrest or detention.
