92% Surge in Flogging Sentences Executed in One Month Under Taliban Rule

Statistics released by the Supreme Court of the Taliban administration indicate that in the first month of the year 1405 (solar calendar), the implementation of flogging sentences increased by 92 percent compared to the month of Hoot last year. Based on these figures, during this period, 115 individuals, including 14 women, were publicly flogged in 19 provinces across the country.

These numbers reflect the expansion of corporal punishment in various regions of the country; a penalty carried out in public view, which has consistently drawn criticism from human rights organizations. The sharp rise in these sentences within a short timeframe has heightened concerns about the state of human rights and the judicial process under courts managed by the Taliban.

The Taliban administration has previously emphasized the enforcement of corporal punishments as part of its desired criminal justice system; an approach that has faced widespread domestic and international condemnation, deemed incompatible with Afghanistan’s human rights commitments.