Taliban authorities this Tuesday flogged three women and nine men in front of hundreds of spectators at a football stadium, signaling the return of this brutal form of punishment, as was the case during their rule in the 1990s.
According to the Associated Press (AP) news agency, the office of the governor of Logar province, south of the Afghan capital Kabul, “invited renowned scholars, ‘mujahideen’. [os ‘soldados de Deus’]elders, chiefs and local people” to the Pul Alam city stadium to watch the sentences being carried out.
At least 17 people, including three women, were publicly flogged on charges of adultery and theft at a football stadium in the city of Pul-e-Alam, the provincial capital of Logar province. pic.twitter.com/lk9gPB6tzS
– Afghan Peace Guard (@APWORG) November 23, 2022
The invitations were sent via social networks, the AP reports.
Those punished received between 21 and 39 lashes after being convicted of theft and adultery by a local court.
The same official said hundreds of people flocked to the stadium, specifying a ban on taking photos and recording videos.
Public whipping, as well as public executions and stoning for alleged crimes, were common during the first period of Taliban rule, from 1996 to 2001, when the extremists were driven out by a US-led international offensive.
After a 20-year insurgency, the Taliban returned to power in August 2021, coinciding with the withdrawal of US troops and other countries from Afghanistan.
Shortly after returning to power, the Taliban pledged to be more moderate and allow the rights of women and minorities.
Instead, however, they ended up restricting rights and freedoms, including the ban on educating girls past sixth grade.
The first confirmed public whipping session since the Taliban took power took place on 11 this month, when 19 men and women each received 39 lashes for alleged crimes of theft, adultery and running away from home.
The reinstatement of this practice demonstrates the Taliban’s willingness to uphold its own strict interpretation of Islamic law, “Sharia.”
As of August 2021, the Taliban has been facing a serious economic crisis and the refusal of official recognition by the international community.
Source: DN
