Women Prisoners In Afghanistan Rise 435 Percent Under Taliban Rule

In a statement, the ministry said the Taliban’s legal texts were drafted by committees of clerics across various ministries and institutions, based on the Quran, Sunnah and recognised Hanafi jurisprudence. It said none of the legislation contradicts Islamic Sharia or lacks a religious basis.

“Opposing these laws amounts to opposing Sharia,” the statement said, adding that objections “lack religious and scholarly basis, stem from ignorance or deliberate disregard, and constitute a crime under Sharia.” The ministry said those who object would be referred to judicial authorities for prosecution.

The warning comes amid growing criticism of the Taliban’s newly endorsed penal code. Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada recently approved the code, which consists of 10 chapters and 119 articles. The Taliban Supreme Court has said it will soon be published in the group’s official gazette.

Over the past four years, the Taliban have replaced Afghanistan’s previous constitution with a series of legal directives, including procedural guidelines, a statute and dozens of decrees, rulings and instructions issued by Akhundzada.

Afghan and international civil society activists have criticised the penal code, saying it legitimises practices such as slavery, domestic violence and a class-based social order.

Abdulhaq Hammad, an official at the Taliban’s Ministry of Information and Culture, said the global order had collapsed and the world had fallen “into the hands of an economic warlord.” Without naming Trump directly, he said this figure intervenes wherever he sees personal interests and “destroys anything that stands in his way.”

Speaking Tuesday at a meeting in Kabul on the protection of cultural heritage, Hammad called on the international community to restrain what he described as this “warlord,” warning that otherwise global heritage sites could be at risk.

Hammad also accused the United States of targeting cultural heritage sites and mosques during the 20-year war in Afghanistan. He said hundreds of mosques were damaged during the conflict and that a number of Taliban members were killed inside mosques.

The Taliban official did not refer to the Bamiyan Buddha statues, historic monuments destroyed in 2001 during the group’s first period of rule, despite international protests and warnings at the time.

The destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas is widely regarded as one of the most prominent cases of cultural heritage destruction in Afghanistan and remains a controversial episode associated with the Taliban’s past rule.

The agency warned that the weather conditions are likely to deepen food insecurity and malnutrition.

In a forecast issued Tuesday, the FAO said heavy rainfall across large parts of Afghanistan is expected to continue for another week, while temperatures could drop sharply in some eastern and south-eastern provinces.

The warning comes as the World Food Programme has expressed concern over rising hunger during the winter months, saying child malnutrition typically peaks during this period.

Heavy rain and snowfall in recent days have caused both financial damage and casualties. According to figures from the Taliban’s disaster management authority, at least 61 people have been killed and more than 110 injured nationwide as a result of the recent snowfall.

Guterres said commitments to international law are being ignored with growing frequency.

Speaking at a UN Security Council meeting convened at the initiative of Somalia, the council’s rotating president, Guterres described the rule of law as the cornerstone of global peace and security and the “beating heart” of the UN Charter.

From Gaza to Ukraine and beyond, he said, the rule of law is being treated like an “à la carte menu”, with governments choosing to follow only the rules that suit them.

He warned that such violations set dangerous precedents, encourage impunity and undermine trust among states.

The UN chief urged countries to uphold their obligations to resolve disputes peacefully, protect human rights and respect the sovereign equality of states.

Guterres also stressed the importance of peaceful tools, including negotiation and mediation, to resolve conflicts, and said fair and independent judicial processes are needed to hold human rights violators accountable.

Without accountability, he said, lasting and just peace is not possible.

Musk shared remarks attributed to the Taliban’s higher education minister, Neda Mohammad Nadeem, who said at a press conference last year that even asking questions about the suspension of girls’ education was prohibited until further notice. Musk wrote on X: “Where are the protests about this?”

The Taliban have barred girls from education beyond the sixth grade. Nadeem, who is considered close to Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, said that just as women’s education is suspended, questions about it are also suspended until further notice.

British far-right activist Tommy Robinson described the stance as “very progressive” after reposting a video of Nadeem’s remarks that circulated widely on social media. Musk also reposted the video, which has drawn tens of millions of views.

The renewed attention has highlighted the continued deprivation of education for girls and women in Afghanistan. Human rights organisations, as well as feminist and rights activists worldwide, have repeatedly condemned the restrictions.

Some right-wing figures, including Robinson and Musk, have also used the issue to criticise left-wing and feminist groups over what they describe as muted reactions.

Musk previously reshared another post on X that criticised what the user described as global silence over the Taliban administration’s policies, including allegations related to human rights abuses.