The Taliban’s Supreme Court said on Wednesday that two women and three men were publicly flogged in Afghanistan’s Ghor and Balkh provinces on charges of “moral corruption” and “alcohol trafficking.”
According to the court’s statement, each of the convicted individuals received at least 39 lashes in public.
The statement said the Ghor court sentenced four people, including two women, for “moral corruption.” The punishment was carried out at the provincial stadium in the presence of local officials, Taliban security forces, and residents.
In a separate case, the Supreme Court said another person in Balkh province was flogged in public for allegedly transporting alcoholic beverages.
Despite widespread international condemnation, the Taliban continue to impose public floggings and corporal punishments, describing them as enforcement of “Islamic Sharia law.”
Human rights organisations have repeatedly called on the Taliban to end such practices, which they say constitute torture and violate Afghanistan’s international obligations.
Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has issued a sharp warning to the Taliban, threatening their complete destruction and saying Pakistan could force them to “flee back to the Tora Bora caves.”
Asif claimed that Pakistan would not need to use even a fraction of its military power to “completely obliterate the Taliban regime” and said a repeat of the Taliban’s retreat into Tora Bora would be “a spectacle to watch.” The Tora Bora mountain complex in eastern Afghanistan gained notoriety for its strategic role after the Taliban's fall in 2001.
The minister accused the Taliban of dragging Afghanistan toward another war to preserve their rule and sustain what he called a “war economy.”
Following the collapse of four days of talks between Pakistan and the Taliban in Istanbul, Asif wrote on X on Wednesday that Pakistan had only entered the discussions “at the request of brotherly countries who were persistently being beseeched by Taliban Regime”
He said recent “venomous statements" by Taliban officials revealed “the devious and splintered mindset of the Taliban regime.”
Asif alleged that the Taliban were blindly pushing Afghanistan into conflict “to retain its usurped rule and maintain the war economy.”
“Despite fully knowing their inherent limitations and hollowness of their war cries, they are beating the war drums to maintain their crumbling facade,” he wrote.
He added that if the Taliban insist on “madly hellbent upon ruining Afghanistan and its innocent people once again then so be it.”
Responding to those warning that “Afghanistan is the graveyard of empires” and that war with it would have dire consequences, Asif said: “Pakistan certainly doesn’t claim it to be an empire but Afghanistan is definitely a graveyard, surely for its own people.”
“Never a graveyard of empires” he continued, “but certainly a playground of empires you have been throughout history.”
The defence minister warned Taliban “warmongers” who, he said, benefit from continued instability in the region, that they were underestimating Pakistan’s “resolve and courage.”
“If the Taliban regime wants to fight us,” he said, “the world will Inshallah see that their threats are nothing but performative circus!.”
Failed Talks in Istanbul
The Taliban and Pakistani delegations held several rounds of lengthy discussions in Istanbul between Saturday and Tuesday, mediated by Qatar and Turkiye.
On Tuesday, Pakistan’s Minister of Information, Attaullah Tarar, announced that the four-day talks with the “Afghan Taliban regime” had ended without results.
Although the Taliban have not yet commented on the failure of the talks, Tarar accused the Taliban delegation of evading key issues and confirmed that Islamabad would take “all necessary measures” to protect its citizens.
He said that since the Taliban’s return to power in Kabul, Pakistan has repeatedly engaged with them over cross-border terrorism, particularly involving Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Baloch separatists.
A Taliban Foreign Ministry source earlier told Afghanistan International that Pakistan had demanded the Taliban launch operations against the TTP and declare it a terrorist organisation.
The source said Islamabad warned that if the Taliban refused, Pakistan reserved the right to carry out airstrikes on “suspicious movements” inside Afghanistan in response to TTP attacks.
The Taliban’s official position, the source added, is that it does not recognise the Pakistani Taliban as a “responsible entity” and regards the issue as Pakistan’s “internal matter.”
The Taliban delegation in Istanbul included Deputy Interior Minister Rahmatullah Najib, Taliban representative in Qatar Suhail Shaheen, senior member Anas Haqqani, Foreign Ministry Political Director Noor Ahmad Noor, Defence Ministry Operations Chief Noor Rahman Nusrat, and Foreign Ministry spokesperson Abdul Qahar Balkhi.
The seven-member Pakistani delegation consisted of diplomats and senior intelligence officials
Pakistan’s Minister of Information and Broadcasting, Attaullah Tarar, announced on Tuesday that four days of negotiations with the “Afghan Taliban regime” in Istanbul had ended without agreement.
In a statement on X, Tarar thanked Qatar and Turkiye for mediating the talks but accused the Taliban delegation of avoiding discussions on key issues.
He said Pakistan would take “all necessary measures” to protect its citizens, adding that since the Taliban’s return to power in 2021, Islamabad had repeatedly engaged with Kabul over cross-border terrorism particularly attacks by Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants and Baloch separatists.
Tarar said Pakistan had urged the Taliban administration to uphold commitments made under the Doha Agreement, both to Pakistan and the international community, but that efforts to secure cooperation had failed. He accused the Taliban of continuing to provide support and shelter to anti-Pakistan militant groups.
“We will continue to take all possible measures necessary to protect our people from the menace of terrorism,” he said, adding that the government would use “all available resources to eliminate terrorists, their hideouts, facilitators, and supporters.”
The minister also warned that Pakistan’s patience had worn thin, accusing the Taliban of “dragging the Afghan people into a destructive conflict.”
He said Pakistan had presented “conclusive and verifiable evidence” of militant activity emanating from Afghan soil, but the Taliban delegation “avoided responsibility” and refused to provide assurances of action, leading to the failure of the talks.
Tarar reiterated his gratitude to Qatar and Turkiye for hosting and mediating the negotiations, saying the Taliban representatives had “verbally agreed” several times to Pakistan’s “logical and legitimate demand” for credible and decisive action against terrorist groups.
Taliban officials have not yet commented on the collapse of the talks.
The Istanbul negotiations followed a meeting between the defence ministers of Pakistan and the Taliban in Doha earlier this month, during which both sides agreed to a ceasefire and to reduce border hostilities. Technical discussions and monitoring mechanisms were deferred to the Istanbul round.
Pakistan has demanded that the Taliban prevent cross-border attacks by TTP militants and provide a written guarantee to curb further assaults on Pakistani territory.
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, leader of the Islamic Party of Afghanistan, has urged Pakistan to adopt a “new, constructive, and lasting” policy toward Afghanistan amid growing tensions between Islamabad and the Taliban.
In a statement shared on X by his son, Habibur Rahman Hekmatyar, the former Afghan prime minister criticised Pakistan’s recent threats of military action, calling on the country’s parliament and people to prevent “irresponsible statements” that could have “serious consequences.”
Hekmatyar condemned what he described as the “silence” of Pakistani lawmakers in the face of escalating rhetoric and said the current tensions between the Taliban and Pakistan were “exactly what India wants to happen.”
He said that attacks by insurgent groups in Pakistan began when NATO forces were still in Afghanistan. He alleged that the United States had allowed India to “train and support Pakistan’s armed opponents” in Afghanistan.
He said that “two Muslim neighbours are on the brink of a dangerous war,” while “millions of refugees are being expelled with humiliation and their homes bulldozed.” Hekmatyar called such actions “contrary to compassion, decency, and human ethics.”
He questioned why Pakistan’s parliament has “failed to take a clear and firm stance on this sensitive situation” and prevent further escalation.
Hekmatyar expressed hope that Islamabad would adopt a policy based on “mutual respect and non-interference” and that both countries could resolve disputes “fairly, rationally, and with patience and wisdom.”
His remarks came after Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif warned that if the ongoing talks between Islamabad and the Taliban failed, Pakistan could enter an “open war” with Afghanistan.
Taliban-affiliated media and Reuters, citing Pakistani security sources, reported on Tuesday that the Istanbul talks between the Afghan Taliban and Pakistan ended without an agreement. Neither side has issued an official statement on the outcome.
The Taliban’s Ministry of Interior warned Tuesday that any attack by Pakistan would be met with a “decisive and powerful response,” describing it as a “lesson for Pakistan and a warning for others.”
Abdul Matin Qane, spokesperson for the Taliban’s Interior Ministry, told Afghanistan’s Ariana News that “the Taliban have never bowed to any force.”
His comments followed a warning from Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, who said an “open war” could erupt if the ongoing peace talks between Islamabad and the Taliban failed to produce an agreement.
Negotiations between the two sides in Istanbul ended Monday after three days without any breakthrough. Pakistan has demanded that the Taliban take “specific and verifiable” action against Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and said it had formally presented its position during the discussions.
The Taliban have repeatedly asserted their right to defend Afghanistan’s territorial integrity, while Islamabad insists that halting cross-border attacks and creating a monitoring mechanism to prevent Afghan soil from being used against Pakistan are key to any lasting settlement.
Pakistan and the Taliban have blamed each other for the failure of three days of talks in Istanbul aimed at securing a long-term ceasefire and easing cross-border tensions.
Taliban-run national television reported on Tuesday that “certain circles within the Pakistani army” were obstructing the negotiations. The broadcaster, quoting Taliban officials, said the administration “cannot prevent attacks inside Pakistan.”
The Taliban-controlled outlet also accused the Pakistani delegation of “incompetence,” alleging that its representatives “retreat from the negotiating table instead of presenting arguments.”
Media outlets close to the Taliban earlier reported that the Istanbul talks ended “without result.” A Pakistani security source confirmed to Reuters that the discussions had concluded without an agreement.
Neither Islamabad nor the Taliban administration has issued an official statement on the outcome.
Since the start of the Istanbul talks, both sides have repeatedly traded blame for the breakdown of the process. The Pakistani delegation reiterated its demand that the Afghan Taliban act against Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants, whom Islamabad accuses of launching attacks from Afghan territory.
Taliban-run national television, in its latest report, restated the group’s position that Afghanistan “cannot prevent attacks in Pakistan or represent the TTP.”
The broadcaster echoed the Taliban administration’s long-held stance that the Pakistani Taliban issue is Pakistan’s internal matter and that Kabul “will not allow Afghan soil to be used against any other country.”