AhlulBayt News Agency: In a statement marking the anniversary, the international rights organisation also published a timeline of its reporting on the war and its aftermath. 

Human Rights Watch said that following the September 11 attacks, the US government authorised interrogation methods that amounted to torture. The organisation and other groups documented torture and ill-treatment by US forces in Afghanistan, including beatings, humiliation, mock drowning, prolonged sleep deprivation and mock executions. Many civilian detainees were held for months or years without being charged before eventually being released. According to the organisation, the US government has not provided full accountability or compensation for these abuses.

Patricia Gossman, senior Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said that 25 years later, Afghans who were tortured in US custody and families of those who were wrongfully killed still lack a clear avenue to bring claims or seek compensation from the US government.

“Successive US administrations have swept serious abuses under the rug,” she said.

The statement said the 20-year US war in Afghanistan, which ended with the Taliban's return to Kabul in August 2021, was governed by the Geneva Conventions and international humanitarian law, which prohibit summary executions, torture and deliberate or indiscriminate attacks against civilians.

Human Rights Watch cited the case of an Afghan farmer who said US forces detained him in Ghazni in 2019 while he was recovering from eye surgery. He said he was severely beaten and permanently lost his eyesight as a result. He was never charged and was released only in August 2021.

The organisation said the United States prosecuted some soldiers over unlawful killings, but many significant cases were not adequately pursued, including the killing of at least 18 civilians in Wardak province in 2014. It also noted that former US President Donald Trump pardoned several convicted service members.

Other coalition forces have also failed to take significant action, Human Rights Watch said. Investigations in Australia and Britain into alleged summary executions and mistreatment have progressed slowly. The Taliban and other armed groups also targeted civilians, killing and injuring thousands without being held accountable, according to the organisation.

Human Rights Watch said the International Criminal Court initially opened an investigation into alleged crimes committed by all sides in the conflict. However, the Trump administration imposed sanctions on the court, and the investigation ultimately focused on the Taliban and Islamic State.