Human Rights Watch said the promised amnesty has not stopped local commanders from retaliating against former members of the army, police and intelligence services.
The insurgents have taken 18 of the country’s 34 provincial capitals in recent days, including its second- and third-largest cities, Herat and Kandahar.
An errant U.S. airstrike in Afghanistan's Helmand province has killed 16 local forces aligned with the Afghan government, according to U.S. officials in Kabul.