Taliban resumes brutal displays
KABUL — The Taliban regime, stepping up the pace and severity of Islamic punishments, carried out its first public execution this week since taking power 15 months ago. A convicted murderer was shot Wednesday, followed a day later by the lashing of 27 men and women in a soccer stadium on charges that included adultery, theft, drug use and running away from home.
The man put to death in western Farah province was not identified, but officials said he was accused of murder five years ago and found guilty after three recent court hearings. Under the Islamic legal tenet of qisas, which allows personal retribution for crimes, the father of the murder victim carried out the death sentence as a crowd watched, shooting the killer three times.
The grim episode drew immediate international condemnation. A statement from the U.N. Office of Human Rights in Geneva called it “deeply disturbing” and declared that all public executions “constitute a form of cruel, unhuman or degrading punishment.” The agency urged Afghan authorities to place an “immediate moratorium” on executions.
Until last month, the strict religious regime, which has been seeking international recognition and is desperate for economic support, refrained from administering such brutal forms of punishment, which were a common sight during its first stint in power from 1996 to 2001.
But on Nov. 23, the Taliban proudly inaugurated the comeback of this controversial practice by inviting prominent Afghans and local citizens to witness the whipping of nine men and three women for various offenses in a sports stadium in Logar province, an hour’s drive south of the capital. Invitations were sent via social media from the Logar governor’s office to “honorable scholars, mujahideen, elders, tribal leaders and local people.”
Since then, similar group punishments, ordered by Taliban courts, have been carried out publicly in scattered rural provinces including Parwan, Farah and Paktia. Media reports from different locations have shown images of crowds watching while men with whips struck seated women covered with burqas or men held facedown on the ground. Important officials often travel to observe the proceedings.
Taliban spokesmen have repeatedly defended these actions as proper and required under sharia law, and they have accused the international community of disrespecting their religion and laws. In a tweet Thursday, Zabihullah Mujahid, the chief Taliban spokesman, said foreign critics of Islamic punishments either have “insufficient information” about Islam or “do not respect the beliefs, laws and internal issues of Muslims, which is an interference in internal affairs.” He also said that “even America and Europe have the death penalty.”
Other Afghan officials, clerics and Taliban supporters welcomed the revival of sharia-based punishments, some in comments on social media. They described the punishments as an important part of the system the Taliban had fought for and expressed hope they would spread further.
“All praise to Allah,” posted Wakil Ahmad Mukhlis, a commenter on Twitter. “May Allah establish a transparent Islamic system like Afghanistan all over the world.”