Taliban on Saturday announced that 21 people were publicly flogged in separate incidents in Kabul and the eastern province of Laghman, continuing their reintroduction of corporal punishments across Afghanistan.
According to two separate statements from the Taliban’s Supreme Court, the individuals — including women — were convicted of various offenses including “illicit relationships, prostitution, theft, and drug trafficking,” specifically for selling hashish and prescription sedatives.
In Laghman, seven individuals were flogged for “illicit relationships” and three others for theft. Sentences ranged from six months to five years in prison and 30 to 39 lashes, the statement said.
Separately, 11 people were punished in Kabul for alleged involvement in the sale and trafficking of drugs. They received between seven months and three and a half years in prison and 10 to 39 lashes each.
The floggings were carried out in public on Saturday, the court confirmed.
Amu TV’s findings indicate that between April 21 and May 22 — corresponding to the Afghan solar month of Sawr — at least 81 people, including 15 women, were publicly flogged in over 14 provinces.
The floggings have drawn sharp condemnation from human rights groups, who describe the punishments as violations of international human rights conventions to which Afghanistan is a party.
Local residents have also voiced their outrage, calling the actions cruel and degrading. “This is an inhumane practice that should have no place in any society,” one resident said.
In addition to floggings, the Taliban carried out at least four public executions by “qisas” — an Islamic retributive form of justice — in the provinces of Farah, Nimruz, and Badghis in April, prompting further condemnation from the international community.
