KABUL — The Taliban’s Supreme Court has pushed back against international condemnation following the public execution of four men on murder charges, claiming that foreign nations have no authority to interfere with what it described as an Islamic legal process.
In a statement issued after the executions, which were carried out Friday in the provinces of Badghis, Nimroz, and Farah, the Taliban asserted that the punishments reflect “the will of Islam, the Islamic system, and the Afghan people,” and warned that international human rights demands would not be honored.
“No foreign party has any right to interfere in the country’s Sharia and judiciary,” the statement said, characterizing calls for restraint from global rights organizations as interference in Afghanistan’s domestic affairs.
According to the Taliban, the four men were executed under the Islamic law of qisas, or retributive justice, for allegedly threatening public security. The executions were held in front of large crowds and carried out by gunfire, witnesses said.
Eyewitnesses described the scenes as harrowing, with multiple gunshots fired at each individual. Many attendees later said they regretted watching the events unfold.
The executions — the most public and coordinated carried out by the Taliban in a single day since they seized power in 2021 — have sparked widespread outrage. The United Nations, Amnesty International, and other human rights organizations have condemned the punishments, calling them violations of international law and urging an immediate moratorium on the death penalty.
