Taliban’s Mullah Baradar Urges Clerics to Support Islamic Governance
Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, deputy prime minister for economic affairs in the Taliban-led administration, has called on religious scholars and clerics to actively support the Islamic system in their sermons and religious speeches.
Speaking at a graduation ceremony at the Jamia Fath-ul-Uloom religious school in Kabul, Baradar urged religious leaders to emphasize support for the Islamic system and what he referred to as national interests alongside religious obligations.
He stated that religious schools play a central role in Islamic societies by providing religious education, promoting prophetic ethics, and shaping the intellectual and spiritual foundations of society. According to Baradar, these institutions have traditionally served as main centers for religious and social activities.
The deputy prime minister also claimed that what he described as ‘jihad’ began in Afghanistan’s religious schools and later spread to towns and villages. He asserted that this process led to widespread confrontations and ultimately to the defeat of foreign forces.
Baradar highlighted the role of religious schools in countering what he called non-Islamic cultures, reforming societal thought, and preserving religious narratives. He stressed that these institutions must remain aligned with the Taliban administration’s vision under all circumstances.
He concluded by calling on religious school graduates to put their knowledge into practice, share it with others, and interact with society in accordance with prophetic ethics — remarks made amid ongoing domestic and international criticism of the Taliban’s policies on education and religious and civil freedoms.
