KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – The Taliban Supreme Court has announced that two individuals were publicly flogged on charges of “adultery” in Paktika province, eastern Afghanistan.
In a statement, the court said that these individuals were flogged on Wednesday, December 25, based on the primary court’s verdict and the Supreme Court’s approval.
According to the statement, one of the individuals received 29 lashes and a two-month prison sentence, while the other received 39 lashes and a five-year prison sentence.
This marks the latest instance of public flogging carried out by the Taliban. Over the past three years, they have publicly flogged hundreds of people, including women, girls, boys, and members of the LGBTQ+ community, for alleged “immoral 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.
The UN, human rights groups, and activists have condemned the Taliban’s use of corporal punishment and execution as cruel, inhuman, and a violation of international law, urging the regime to cease the practice.
The Taliban leaders, however, have so far disregarded the criticism, arguing that their actions align with their interpretation of Islamic law. They accuse critics of misunderstanding or disagreeing with their interpretation of Sharia.
