At least four killed in Taliban crackdown on protests, says UN

Human rights official says group conducting house-to-house searches and threatening journalists

The Taliban's violent crackdown on protests against their hardline rule has already led to four documented deaths, according to a UN human rights official who said the group had used live ammunition, whips and batons to break up demonstrations.

Ravina Shamdasani, the UN's rights spokesperson, told a briefing in Geneva that it had also received reports of house-to-house searches for those who participated in the protests.