RASC News Agency: The Taliban have reportedly subjected three men and one woman to public flogging in the provinces of Paktia and Kunduz. Sources indicate that these individuals were beaten and tortured prior to the punishment being carried out. In a statement, the Taliban’s Supreme Court confirmed that two men accused of theft in Paktia had received 39 lashes each. The court further announced that both men were sentenced to two years in prison.
Another statement from the Supreme Court detailed that a man and a woman, accused of “running away from home,” were flogged earlier today Wednesday, January 1st, in the Taliban court’s courtyard in Qala-i-Zal district, Kunduz province. Both individuals were sentenced to four months imprisonment in addition to 25 lashes. The Taliban’s practice of daily public floggings continues unabated, often targeting individuals accused of various crimes. Observers claim that these punishments are carried out arbitrarily, with accusations often lacking credible evidence and based on fabricated charges.
In the past two months alone since the beginning of October the Taliban have flogged over 140 individuals, including 22 women, across multiple provinces for alleged offenses. These public corporal punishments have drawn widespread condemnation both domestically and internationally. Human rights organizations have labeled such acts as gross violations of human rights and human dignity, demanding their immediate cessation. However, the Taliban remain defiant, disregarding the outcry from Afghanistani citizens and global organizations, and continuing to impose such punishments unabated.
