RASC News Agency: Sources report that Taliban officials at the Islam Qala border have confiscated religious books from Shia pilgrims returning from Iraq and Iran. The Taliban officials have labeled these pilgrims as “polytheists” and condemned their books as “full of heresy” and “insults to the Companions.” On Monday, September 9, Taliban authorities at the Islam Qala border seized 30 religious books and 20 “Khalatis” (funeral shrouds) from a vehicle carrying pilgrims. Among the confiscated texts were “Ziyarat Ashura,” “Communion with God,” and other books related to Shia Islam.
The source indicated that the Taliban members destroyed the books by tearing them up and discarding them. This action follows previous Taliban directives to remove books that contradict the Hanafi school of thought or critique fundamentalism and terrorism from educational institutions and university libraries.
Additionally, the Taliban have banned the teaching of religious studies based on the Jafari school of jurisprudence in schools and universities. Previously, religious textbooks in predominantly Shia provinces were based on Jafari jurisprudence, and this was also taught at the Sharia Faculty of Bamiyan University. Taliban spokespersons and officials have repeatedly stated that their regime aims to “homogenize” Afghanistani society. While they assert that Afghanistan has been politically and ethnically unified, they claim further work is needed on linguistic and cultural fronts. The removal of Persian from government institutions and restrictions on the Shia faith are part of this broader agenda.
