The Taliban carried out a public flogging of 12 people in Logar province after a court sentenced them to lashes for various crimes including adultery, sodomy and robbery.
The flogging took place in the provincial sports stadium in Pul-e-Alam city where people had gathered to watch.
One source, who witnessed the incident, told Amu that three of the accused were women and nine were men. The men received between 21 and 39 lashes, while the women received 39 lashes each for adultery, he said.
According to him, 39 lashes is the maximum sentence.
Another Logar resident who also witnessed the floggings said, on condition of anonymity, that journalists were not allowed to cover the event and that many people were arrested for attempting to take photos or videos.
This comes after the Taliban’s leader Mullah Haibatullah Akhunzada recently ordered the full implementation of Sharia law when meting out court sentences. This includes Hudud, which is the amputation of hands and feet, public floggings and the death penalty.
Wednesday’s public flogging comes just two days after 19 people, including nine women, were lashed in Takhar province in northeastern Afghanistan. They had also been found guilty by the Taliban of various crimes, a Taliban spokesman said.
On Nov. 18, a young couple were publicly lashed in the city of Bamiyan for having an affair.
Since the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021, the group has sporadically carried out punishments reminiscent of the late 1990s when they were in power.
