4.8.7. Turkmen

Table of contents

4.8.7. Turkmen

Turkmen originate from Turkic-speaking tribes and adhere to the Sunni Hanafi school of thought.1854 They speak Turkmen and Dari.1855 Although their exact number is ‘uncertain’,1856 some sources have estimated that they make up 1 % to 3 % of the Afghan population.1857 Turkmen predominantly reside in northern Afghanistan,1858 in provinces bordering Turkmenistan.1859 Large numbers of Turkmen were reportedly residing in Jawzjan Province, as well as smaller numbers in the provinces of Faryab,1860 Takhar, Samangan, Sar-e Pul, Balkh, Kunduz,1861 Badghis,1862 and Herat.1863 They live mainly in rural areas.1864

Since the Taliban takeover, ethnic minorities, including Turkmen, have faced marginalisation,1865 and Turkmen have also reportedly been affected by forced evictions.1866 According to the UN Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team, there were ‘persistent reports of a deliberate and seemingly organized campaign by Pashtuns to dislodge ethnic Tajik, Turkmen and Uzbek communities from rich agricultural land in the north’.1867 Forced evictions were reported in several provinces across Afghanistan,1868 but particularly in the northern parts of the country, as reported by Maliha Shirzay for RWI.1869 In many cases, forced evictions occurred as a result of land disputes and claims by persons and groups perceived to have Taliban support,1870 such as Kuchis.1871

A UN report published in September 2023 noted that members of inter alia the Turkmen community has continued to allege that the removal of their languages as official curriculum languages constitutes an ‘attack’ on their linguistic heritage.1872

In June 2025, Sheikh Samiullah Farahmand, a Turkmen cleric, was appointed by the de facto authorities as their ambassador to Türkiye.1873 Before this appointment, he served as the de facto provincial head of the military court in Kunduz Province.1874

  • 1854

    MRG, Uzbeks and Turkmens in Afghanistan, n.d., url

  • 1855

    SCA, The Afghan Population, n.d., url

  • 1856

    MRG, Uzbeks and Turkmens in Afghanistan, n.d., url

  • 1857

    USCIRF, Afghanistan, April 2022, url, p. 2; MRG, Uzbeks and Turkmens in Afghanistan, n.d., url; SCA, The Afghan Population, n.d., url

  • 1858

    Deccan Herald, Dominant ethnic groups in Afghanistan, 18 August 2021, url; MRG, Uzbeks and Turkmens in Afghanistan, n.d., url; SCA, The Afghan Population, n.d., url

  • 1859

    Jamestown Foundation, Afghanistan’s Ethnic Turkmens: Enemies or Allies for Ashgabat?, 4 October 2015, url

  • 1860

    Jamestown Foundation, Afghanistan’s Ethnic Turkmens: Enemies or Allies for Ashgabat?, 4 October 2015, url; Obaid, A., and Ruttig, T., Elections 2014 (22): How disenchantment with General Dostum split the Uzbek vote bank, 22 May 2014, url

  • 1861

    Obaid, A., and Ruttig, T., Elections 2014 (22): How disenchantment with General Dostum split the Uzbek vote bank, 22 May 2014, url

  • 1862

    Jamestown Foundation, Afghanistan’s Ethnic Turkmens: Enemies or Allies for Ashgabat?, 4 October 2015, url

  • 1863

    Rasekh, M. S., A Study of the Turkmen Dialects of Afghanistan: Phonology – Morphology – Lexicon – Sociolinguistic Aspects, PhD Thesis, 7 October 2016, url, p. 12

  • 1864

    Rasekh, M. S., A Study of the Turkmen Dialects of Afghanistan: Phonology – Morphology – Lexicon – Sociolinguistic Aspects, PhD Thesis, 7 October 2016, url, p. 33

  • 1865

    AI, The State of the World's Human Rights; Afghanistan 2023, 24 April 2024, url, p. 71; UN, General Assembly, Situation of human rights in Afghanistan, 1 September 2023, url, para. 50

  • 1867

    UN Security Council, Thirteenth report of the Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team, 26 May 2022, url, para. 19

  • 1868

    UN, General Assembly, Situation of human rights in Afghanistan, 1 September 2023, url, para. 50; UN Human Rights Council, Situation of human rights in Afghanistan, 23 February 2024, url, para. 62

  • 1872

    UN, General Assembly, Situation of human rights in Afghanistan, 1 September 2023, url, para. 53

  • 1873

    Afghanistan International, Taliban Appoints Turkmen Cleric As Ambassador To Türkiye, 26 June 2025, url; MEI, Taliban Leadership Tracker: Sheikh Samiullah Farahmand, n.d., url

  • 1874

    MEI, Taliban Leadership Tracker: Sheikh Samiullah Farahmand, n.d., url