Women’s Movement Claims Taliban Coerced Manizha Seddiqi To Give Forced Confession

In a statement issued on Thursday, the ministry warned political activists of "legal and religious" consequences for repeating political activities.

This Taliban ministry stated that political party activities have been declared as a prohibited act following the group’s takeover of power in 2021, and the directorate of political parties has been revoked and removed from the ministry's structures.

The ministry noted that some officials of political parties have recently "taken action and performed activities from their dissolved party addresses”.

The statement mentions, "The Ministry of Justice considers any activities under the name of a party illegal in Afghanistan and warns that it will take legal and religious action against offenders in case of repetition of such activities."

The ministry did not mention the name of any political activists and did not provide details regarding their actions and positions.

It seems that the Taliban refers to Gulbuddin Hekmatyar and the Hezb-e Islami Party. Recently, the Taliban expelled Gulbuddin Hekmatyar from his residence in Kabul. The Taliban stated that Hekmatyar has been living in government property. This issue sparked extensive debates between members of the party and Taliban officials.

The Taliban's Ministry of Justice added that it has suspended the activities of social institutions that were active in the previous government, and only charities and unions can operate in accordance with principles and with official permission from the Taliban's Ministry of Justice.

The ministry also warned charities and other social institutions operating without official permission from the group to cease their activities.

Simultaneously with the release of this announcement, the Taliban’s Supreme Court announced that three individuals have been put on trial, for their involvement in political activities, in a military court in Kandahar.

On Thursday, the Taliban’s Supreme Court stated that two of the accused have been sentenced to 15 years of imprisonment each, while the third individual has received a sentence of 30 lashes.

As per the statement issued by the Taliban’s Supreme Court, the third individual has also been handed a prison sentence, although the duration of this imprisonment has not been specified.

This marks the first official announcement by the Taliban’s Supreme Court regarding the trial and punishment of individuals for engaging in political activities. Previously, numerous individuals were detained by the Taliban for their civil and political engagements, yet the group refrained from explicitly addressing penalties for political activities in their official communications.

On Thursday, the Taliban’s Supreme Court stated that two of the accused have been sentenced to 15 years of imprisonment each, while the third individual has received a sentence of 30 lashes.

As per the statement issued by the Taliban’s Supreme Court, the third individual has also been handed a prison sentence, although the duration of this imprisonment is not specified.

This marks the first official announcement by the Taliban’s Supreme Court regarding the trial and punishment of individuals for engaging in political activities. Previously, numerous individuals were detained by the Taliban for their civil and political engagements, yet the group refrained from explicitly addressing penalties for political activities in their official communications.

Earlier, the Taliban's Ministry of Justice had announced the dissolution of all political parties upon the group's takeover of power in August 2021. The group had declared that political activities within the country were strictly prohibited under its control.

National Security Advisors of the SCO member states issued a statement on Wednesday stating that the presence of international terrorist groups and other groups based in Afghanistan poses a serious threat to the member states of the SCO.

The joint statement was issued after the SCO meeting in Kazakhstan. Reviewing the security situation of the SCO member countries was the main topic of this meeting.

During its nineteenth annual meeting, the Security Councils of the SCO emphasised on the importance of expanding cooperation to address terrorist threats, transnational organised crime, suppression of channels financing terrorism, and illegal migration.

China, India, Russia, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Iran, and Uzbekistan constitute the SCO's membership. These nations have voiced concerns multiple times over the past two years regarding the presence of terrorist groups in Afghanistan.

According to the statement, the two individuals in Kabul received 35 lashes each, and the other individual in Kandahar received 30 lashes.

On Thursday, the Taliban’s Supreme Court wrote that a man accused of extramarital relationships in the Deh Sabz district of Kabul province has been sentenced to four years of imprisonment, and the woman has been sentenced to three years of imprisonment.

A court of the group in Kandahar has also sentenced an individual to three years of imprisonment for involvement in drug-related crimes.

The Taliban’s Supreme Court has not provided any details regarding the identities of these individuals.

Following the takeover of power in Afghanistan in 2021, the Taliban has resumed physical punishments such as lashing, amputation, and execution.

Human rights organisations and the international community have repeatedly urged the Taliban to cease the cruel and inhumane punishments against the Afghan citizens.

Qomi expressed hope that in the future, no other technical problems would arise regarding the water rights.

Furthermore, he highlighted the potential for collaboration between Afghanistan and Iran on water supply issues. He emphasised that Afghanistan could emerge as a new option for attracting foreign investment for significant projects in Iran.

Despite not formally recognising the Taliban, Iran maintains close economic and diplomatic ties with the group and Afghanistan's embassy in Tehran has been transferred to Taliban control.

In an interview with Tasnim News Agency, Qomi said, "During the Taliban's rule, the issue of the water rights has been a mandatory treaty and they have declared commitment in this regard from the early days when the new rulers settled in Kabul."

The special representative of Iran has questioned the construction of the Kamal Khan Dam by the previous Afghan government, stating that the insufficient reservoir capacity of the dam has led to the inability to store water, especially during flood conditions, causing the diversion of water to a region known as Goud-e Zareh.

However, Qomi said that the Taliban has resolved this issue.

According to him, one of the measures undertaken by the Taliban in the past year has been to address the ongoing issues with the Kamal Khan Dam.

Iran's Special Representative clarified, "Based on a report provided by the Taliban, repairs have been made to the dam wall, diverting water towards Goud-e Zareh, adjustments have been made to the ground level in front of the dam, and ultimately, the issues with the dam gates have been resolved."

Qomi emphasised that these repairs resulted in a significant development towards the end of the last year [Persian calendar] and at the beginning of this year, following the accumulation of water behind the Kamal Khan Dam, the dam gates were promptly opened, allowing 32 million cubic meters of water to swiftly enter Iranian territory.