Family of Afghan volleyball player say she was not killed by Taliban after coach claimed she had been beheaded
THE family of an Afghan volleyball player reportedly beheaded by the Taliban have said she wasn’t killed by the militants.
Mahjabin Hakimi’s coach claimed she was killed earlier this month and alleged pictures of her severed head had appeared on social media.
His claims were reported by the Persian Independent website and were picked up by news outlets across the world.
One of Mahjabin’s team mates, who fled from Afghanistan to the UK in August, told the BBC a member of the squad had been murdered by the Taliban.
But now her family have said she wasn’t in fact killed by the Taliban, though the exact circumstances of her death remain unclear.
One family member told the Alt News website she died on August 6.
The relative also shared an image of Mahjabin's tombstone which had the date of her death inscribed on it.
Her brother Skandar Hakimi changed his Facebook profile to a black circle on August 7 and in comments, a person wrote “we pray for your sister”.
Most read in The US Sun
Two days later he posted a picture of her with the words: “I will always be proud of you dear Sister.”
She was dressed in military fatigues and carrying a gun and it was reported she was a police officer or a member the Afghan National Army.
Friends of Mahjabin posted pictures of her and a tribute on August 9.
Pictures of Mahjabin’s body have circulated on social media but appear to show she had not been beheaded.
Indian journalist Deepa K. Parent tweeted that she had also spoken to Mahjabin’s family and removed and deleted tweets about her death due to the “misleading” reports.
Mahjabin had played for the Kabul Municipality Volleyball Club before the Taliban's takeover in late August.
In September, players from Afghanistan's national volleyball team said they were in hiding from the insurgents.
COACH'S CLAIM
Zahra Fayazi, who fled to the UK in August, said a member of the squad had been murdered by the Taliban.
"Our players who were living in the provinces had to leave and live in other places," she told the BBC.
"They even burned their sports equipment to save themselves and their families. They didn't want them to keep anything related to sport. They are scared.
"Many of our players who are from provinces were threatened many times by their relatives who are Taliban and Taliban followers.
"The Taliban asked our players' families to not allow their girls to do sport, otherwise they will be faced with unexpected violence.".
Zahra told the BBC that one of her teammates had been killed - although the details around her death remained unclear at the time.
One former player on the team, who used the pseudonym Sophia to protect her family in Afghanistan, fled to a neighbouring country in 2019 after she was stabbed by two men in the capital Kabul.
PLAYERS THREATENED
Sophia had been in regular contact with her teammates and said that one girl had been shot in August.
"I'm sure it was the Taliban," Sophia told the BBC.
"At that time the Taliban was overtaking all of the cities and there were no other groups that would do this.
"She was only a player and she didn't do anything for people to want to attack her."
Since the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan they claimed they would not enforce the strict oppressive laws of the 90s, when females were mostly excluded from education and work.
The Taliban's education authority had said that this time women will be allowed to attend university.
Read More on The US Sun
But the order states that classes must be segregated by sex, or at least divided by a curtain and the students must wear an abaya robe and a niqab.
And under the brutal Taliban regime, female students must only be taught by women or "old men" of good character - and end their lesson five minutes earlier than men to stop them from mingling outside.
We pay for your stories!
Do you have a story for The Sun news desk?
Email us at exclusive@the-sun.co.uk or call 0207 782 4104. You can WhatsApp us on 07423 720 250. We pay for videos too.
Click here to upload yours.
Click here to get The Sun newspaper delivered for FREE for the next six weeks.