A local civilian, speaking to "Voice of America" in 2002, said that he and some other locals were forced to help destroy the statues. He also claimed that Pakistani and Arab engineers "were involved" in the destruction. Mullah Omar, during the destruction, was quoted as saying, "What are you complaining about? We are only waging war on stones". An author for "Time" magazine reported that the Koran does not command the destruction of images of other faiths, and that Islamic teachings did not justify the Taliban's actions.