AFGHANISTAN: TALIBAN PUBLICLY FLOGGED 19 PEOPLE AS PUNISHMENT FOR ADULTERY & THEFT

November 22, 2022:

In an effort to implement the strict Sharia law among the Afghan population, the hardline Islamist Taliban regime on November 19, 2022 lashed at least 19 people for committing various crimes such as adultery, theft, and running away from home, a Supreme Court official confirmed, according to the Associated Press. This would be the first official confirmation of brutal public lashings and floggings of the Afghan public for violation of laws in Afghanistan since the fall of Kabul to the Taliban in August 2021 post the United States troop withdrawal.  
A Supreme Court official, Abdul Rahim Rashid, on November 20 reportedly said that an estimated 10 men and nine women were lashed 39 times each in Taloqan city in northeastern Takhar province for various crimes.
These lashings were carried out publicly in the city’s main mosque in presence of the members of the public which included the elders, clerics, and residents. 
A Taliban spokesperson, meanwhile justified the beatings saying that the regime will ensure the strict interpretation of Islamic law or Sharia across the country. Zabihullah Mujahid, the spokesperson said that the group’s supreme leader, Hibatullah Akhunzada, met with Taliban judges and ordered them to implement Sharia law in a meeting. Several footage of the Taliban flogging women and men likewise for various offences have frequently appeared on social media.
Taliban earlier on November 18 also publicly flogged a boy and a girl for having a pre-marital affair in Bamyan province attracting backlash over the regime's repressive laws, Khaama Press reported citing local sources. The public flogging of the couple was ordered by the court in Bamyan province in Afghanistan on November 17.
As many as 1,000 people witnessed when the couple was being publically punished by the Taliban men, the agency stated. The two were sentenced to 39 flogs each. As the incident shook people, the Taliban warned the public against reporting these scenes.