KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – As the international community seeks improved engagement with Taliban-controlled Afghanistan, the regime’s supreme leader emphasizes the group’s adherence to Sharia law in its foreign relations.
In his message for Eid-ul Adha, shared by the Taliban spokesperson, Zabihullah Mujahid on Friday, June 14, the Taliban Supreme Leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada, says that the regime aims to establish political and economic ties, particularly with Islamic countries, within the framework of Sharia law.
“It is our shared responsibility to protect, nurture, and serve our Sharia-based system. This system has been established through the sacrifices of our martyrs and the immense efforts of our Mujahideen and Muslim nation,” the Taliban supreme leader emphasized.
The statement from the Taliban leader comes as the UN and the global community seek avenues to enhance engagement with the regime and press it to sever ties with terrorist organizations, uphold human rights, especially the fundamental rights of women and girls, among other priorities.
The UN is preparing for the third meeting of special envoys on Afghanistan, scheduled for the end of this month in Doha, Qatar. According to the UN, the meeting aims to enhance international engagement with Afghanistan in a “more coherent, coordinated, and structured manner.”
Although the UN has extended an invitation to the Taliban, the regime has yet to confirm their participation. In the previous meeting, the Taliban did not attend after their demands to be recognized as the sole representative of Afghanistan and to meet the UN Secretary-General were rejected.
Amid numerous reports of human rights violations in Afghanistan, the Taliban’s hardline leader claimed that under his leadership, the rights of all citizens are ensured and protected.
“No individual can commit injustice or aggression against others; oppression is prevented, and the rights of the oppressed are upheld,” he said.
Despite declaring a “General Amnesty” upon returning to power, the Taliban has repeatedly violated it by arresting, torturing, and killing civilians and employees of the previous government, particularly former soldiers, women, and rights activists.
Moreover, under the Taliban rule, religious minorities, including Shia, Sikhs, Hindus, Christians, Ahmadiyya, and Ismaili, continued to experience marginalization, prejudice, and discrimination.
The Taliban has excluded Shia jurisprudence from the education system, ensuring that religious teaching is exclusively based on the Sunni sect of Islam.
Despite the regime’s claim of maintaining security in Afghanistan, since their takeover, the local branch of Islamic State, ISKP, has carried out numerous attacks on schools, mosques, and shopping malls. These attacks mostly targeted ethnic Hazara-Shia, who receive little to no security protection or access to medical care and other assistance from the Taliban government.
