Taliban Publicly Flogs 7 People Across 4 Afghan Provinces

The Taliban’s Supreme Court announced on Tuesday that seven people were publicly flogged across four Afghan provinces, each receiving approximately 60 lashes in total.

Among those punished was a woman who was lashed under Taliban court orders for the “crime of fleeing home.”

According to the court’s statement, Taliban officials flogged one man and three women in Balkh and Parwan provinces, accusing them of “moral corruption” and engaging in extramarital relations. Each reportedly received about 30 lashes.

In separate incidents, three individuals including one woman were publicly flogged in Badakhshan and Laghman provinces on charges of “alcohol sales and fleeing home,” also receiving 30 lashes each.

Despite repeated international appeals urging the Taliban to halt public corporal punishment of both men and women, the group continues to administer lashings across various provinces for a range of alleged offences.

Richard Bennett, the UN special rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan, expressed grave concern on Monday over the Taliban’s increasing use of corporal punishment. He called the practice a violation of international law and urged an immediate end to it.

Citing figures from the Taliban’s Supreme Court, Bennett reported that the group had flogged at least 63 men and four women across several provinces in the past week alone.