Taliban Hand Down Floggings, Prison Terms To 40 In Kabul & Faryab
Taliban courts flogged 40 people in Kabul and Faryab province on various charges, according to statements from the group’s judicial authorities.
Taliban courts flogged 40 people in Kabul and Faryab province on various charges, according to statements from the group’s judicial authorities.
Primary courts in Kabul sentenced 37 people to between 10 and 39 lashes on charges including the sale and trafficking of narcotic tablets, crystal meth, alcohol, cannabis and theft. They were also given prison terms ranging from seven months to three years.
In Shirin Tagab district of Faryab province, three people were publicly flogged with 39 lashes each on charges of producing, selling and drinking alcohol, the Taliban Supreme Court said in a statement issued Monday, February 2. The court said each of them was also sentenced to two years in prison.
Despite repeated calls from international and human rights organisations to abolish corporal punishment and uphold the dignity of defendants, the Taliban has continued the practice of public floggings.
Taliban authorities say flogging is part of their interpretation of Islamic law within the judicial system.
The development comes as the Taliban’s new penal code outlines punishments based in part on an individual’s social status. Under the code, if a religious scholar commits an offence, the response is limited to advice.
By contrast, the same offence committed by someone described as middle class is punishable by imprisonment, while those from lower social classes may face corporal punishment in addition to prison terms.
