Afghanistan: executions, stoning… Taliban leader orders strict adherence to Sharia

Days after a series of draconian laws for women, the supreme leader of the Taliban in Afghanistan ordered judges to apply all aspects of Islamic law. This applies to public executions, stoning or amputation of the limbs of thieves.

In a tweet posted Sunday evening, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the “binding” order came from Taliban supreme leader Haibatullah Akhundzada after meeting with a panel of judges. Akhundzada, who has not been filmed or photographed in public since the Taliban returned to power in August 2021, rules the country by decree from Kandahar (south), the birthplace of the fundamentalist Islamist movement.

“Carefully study the records of thieves, kidnappers and rebels,” the spokesman wrote, quoting Akhundzade. To “these files, in which all the conditions of the Shariah were observed (…), you are obliged to apply” all the prescribed sanctions, he continued, referring to Islamic law.

Ultra-strict interpretation of Islam

A Taliban spokesman was unavailable on Monday to provide additional information. The Supreme Leader names the offenses considered the most serious under Islamic law and for which various penalties are provided, including corporal punishment. They include adultery, falsely accusing someone of a recent crime, as well as drinking, stealing, banditry, apostasy, and rebellion.

According to Islamic scholars, the condemnation of some of these facts requires a very high degree of evidence, including, in the case of adultery, the confession or testimony of four adult Muslim men.

Social media has been flooded for more than a year with videos and photos of Taliban fighters performing street whippings on people accused of various offences. There are also reports of flogging for adultery in the countryside after Friday prayers, but this is hard to verify on your own.

Back in power, the Taliban promised to be more flexible in their application of sharia, but they mostly returned to the over-strict interpretation of Islam that marked their first tenure (1996-2001). They then publicly punished those guilty of theft, kidnapping, or adultery with punishments such as amputation of a limb or stoning.

“If they do start to enforce” the harshest aspects of Islamic law, they will seek to “create the fear that society has gradually lost since their return to power,” explains Rahima Popalzai, a legal and political analyst in Afghanistan. According to him, “as a theocratic structure, the Taliban also want to strengthen their religious identity within Muslim countries.”

Women banned from parks, gardens, gyms and public baths

Within fifteen months, women in particular have seen their hard-won rights evaporate and they are increasingly excluded from public life. Most of them have lost their jobs or are forced to stay at home on a beggarly wage. They are also prohibited from traveling unaccompanied by a male relative and must wear a veil or hijab when leaving their homes.

Last week, the Taliban also banned them from parks, gardens, gyms and public baths. According to Rahima Popalzai, the latest terrorist attacks in the country may also explain this order of strict application of sharia.

“In connection with the recent attacks, their claims (to ensure security in the country) were also interrogated, but they want to tell the world: we can keep our promises Rakhima Popalzai says. On 30 September in Kabul, a suicide bomber blew himself up at a student training center located in the Hazara Shia minority community in Kabul, killing 54 people, including 51 girls.

There have been no reports of an attack, but six members of the EI-K regional branch of the Islamic State jihadist group accused of involvement in it were recently killed by the Taliban. A few days later, on October 5, an explosion at a mosque on the territory of the Interior Ministry itself also killed at least four people.