Justice Minister Fazel Ahmad Manawi on Monday said the Taliban is guilty of war crimes for torturing and killing war hostages. He said the group is not committed to adhering to any international laws or humanitarian norms. 

Manawi said that all crimes against humanity committed by the Taliban should be assessed at the national and international levels.

A video circulating on social media shows Taliban militants killing an army commander after he is arrested by the group.

Specifically, the video shows the moment when Colonel Abdul Hamid Hamidi, the commander of the 1st Regiment of the Afghan Army’s 207 Zafar Corps in Herat, is taken captive. Security officials said the colonel was arrested with five of his soldiers and then he was shot and killed.

“What is done by the Taliban is a violation of human rights, a violation of international law and is an international crime and humanitarian crime,” Manawi said.

A watchdog organization said that it has registered many such incidents of war crimes committed by the Taliban.

“Shooting captives is against the law and is a crime under national and international laws as well as under Sharia law,” said Mohammad Ayub Yusufzai, a member of the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission.

The Taliban did not comment on the matter.

Another video that has been confirmed by a Taliban spokesman shows two people killed after a guilty verdict by a kangaroo court for charges of robbery.

“They want to cause horror among the people to the extent that people are afraid of them,” said Injila Rahil, the deputy chairperson of the lawyers' union.

President Ashraf Ghani, who attended a special session of the houses of Parliament on Monday said the Taliban has become crueler compared to the past.

“Talib attacks are more violent, more bloodthirsty and more oppressive,” Ghani said.

Back in June, 23 members of an Afghan special force unit were executed by the Taliban in Faryab province after they surrendered to the group. Moreover, a famous comedian, Mohammad Khasha Zwan, was killed in Kandahar after he was taken captive by the group late last month.