KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – The Taliban publicly flogged eight people in Paktia province, eastern Afghanistan, on charges of “theft,” “murder,” “kidnapping,” and “illicit relationships,” amid a recent surge in corporal punishment.
The Taliban Supreme Court announced in a statement that the flogging of these individuals took place in the presence of local authorities and the public on Tuesday, December 17.
According to the statement, each individual received 39 lashes and was sentenced to prison terms ranging from two to ten years, based on the verdict of the Taliban military court in Paktia.
On the same day, the Taliban publicly flogged five people, including two women, in Afghanistan’s northeastern Parwan province on charges of “adultery and illicit relationships.”
These incidents represent the most recent in a series of public floggings carried out by the Taliban in Afghanistan. Over the past three years, the regime has publicly flogged hundreds of people across the country, mostly for what the regime terms “moral crimes.”
In his latest report submitted to the UN Security Council on Thursday, December 12, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres documented the flogging of 108 individuals, including 26 women and a girl, in Afghanistan over the past three months.
The Taliban has also publicly executed at least six men for murder since their return to power in Afghanistan in August 2021.
Previously, Amnesty International urged the Taliban to immediately and unconditionally end the “criminal practice” of public flogging and all other forms of corporal punishment. The watchdog emphasized the need for a formal justice mechanism with fair trials and access to legal remedies.
“The Taliban continue to ignore widespread criticism as they flagrantly flout basic human rights principles in an alarming slide into what looks like a grim reminder of their rule of decades ago,” the rights group said.
“These outrageous punishments are just another step in the legalization of inhuman practices by the Taliban’s cruel justice system and expose the de-facto authorities’ complete disregard for international human rights law,” it added.
However, the Taliban argues that it enforces Sharia law in Afghanistan, accusing other countries and rights groups of either lacking sufficient understanding of Islamic laws or harboring biases against Islam.
