The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights strongly condemned the public execution of a man by the Taliban in Afghanistan’s Badghis province, calling it a clear violation of international law.
The man, identified as Esmail from Jawand district, was executed by gunfire in front of a crowd at a stadium in Qala-e-Naw on Thursday after being convicted of killing two people.
The sentence, according to Taliban authorities, had passed through all stages of their judiciary and was approved by their supreme leader.
“Public executions breach international law, and the death penalty more generally is incompatible with the fundamental right to life,” said UN rights chief Volker Turk in a post on social media. He urged Afghanistan’s de facto authorities to “impose an immediate moratorium on executions” and take concrete steps toward abolishing the death penalty.
Taliban have resumed corporal punishments and public executions since returning to power in August 2021. Thursday’s incident marks at least the 10th confirmed public execution since then, based on figures from the Taliban’s Supreme Court. Human rights groups and international organizations have repeatedly criticized the group for its use of harsh punishments and lack of due process in trials.
The UN has called on the Taliban to align their judicial practices with international human rights obligations, but the group has so far defended its legal system as Sharia-based and consistent with its interpretation of Islamic law.
