Human rights violations by the TalibanIn the Middle East, especially in Pakistan and Afghanistan, there is an Islamist extremist group that resorts to actions terrorists to gain and maintain power. In 1994, this group, called the Taliban, began in Afghanistan as a political organization and later invaded Pakistan. They imposed strict Islamic rule on all people in both countries. The Taliban protected Osama bin Laden after the United States accused him of masterminding the September 11 terrorist attacks. Even though the Taliban believe they are protecting their religion, they are violating the human rights of the people of Pakistan and Afghanistan. By forcing them to follow the Islamic regime, the Taliban are violating Article 18 of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), which gives everyone the right to choose their religion. They are taking extremist measures that infringe on the people's right to life, liberty and security of the person, set out as a human right in Article 3 of the UDHR. The Taliban started because they thought they were doing something good. Their goal was to enforce Islamic law, called sharia. They went to the extreme, forcing men to grow beards and forbidding women from laughing out loud. The Muslim religion is divided into two sects: Sunni and Shiite. The Taliban aims to make all Muslims Sunni. Unfortunately, this means violently punishing anyone who identifies as a Shia Muslim. According to the Human Rights Watch World Report, “In 2012, at least 325 members of the Shia Muslim population were killed in targeted attacks that took place across Pakistan. "The Taliban believe that it is not only their right but also their responsibility to protect and cleanse the Islamic religion...... middle of paper ...... Est. She is valuable because she is a primary source who actually witnessed the events and human rights violations, but her first-hand opinion may be a limitation due to bias. Yousafzai, Malala. My name is Malala: the girl who stood up for education and was shot by the Taliban. New York: Little Brown, 2013. This book is an autobiography written by Malala Yousafzai, a young girl who was shot by the Taliban in Pakistan for defending girls' right to education. Its aim is to spread knowledge and inspire people to stand up for education so that one day the problem will be solved in Pakistan. She is a primary source and has experienced Taliban violence first hand, which is valuable. The limitations are that this is a very biased source because she was so immersed in the events that occurred, she was a woman, and she was living in Pakistan at the time..