52 Tons of Expired and ‘Un-Islamic’ Goods Burned in Nimroz
Local officials in Nimroz have announced that in two separate operations, 52 tons of expired food and non-food items, smuggled goods, and several products labeled as “un-Islamic” were collected in the city of Zaranj and burned in a location away from residential areas.
Mawlawi Abdulaziz Wahidyar, inspector of the Department of Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice and Complaints in Nimroz, said that seven tons of expired goods and some items he described as un-Islamic, including musical instruments, drums, and flavored hookahs, were gathered and destroyed following patrols by the department’s enforcement officers throughout Zaranj.
The Taliban’s Department of Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice has imposed extensive restrictions on cultural activities and certain trades in recent years. The inclusion of musical instruments among the destroyed items indicates that the department’s oversight is not limited to food safety but also extends to cultural and social spheres—an issue that has consistently raised concerns among cultural activists and some residents.
In a separate operation, Mawlawi Rahmatullah Hemmat, technical deputy of Nimroz Customs, announced the destruction of 45 tons of various expired and smuggled goods. According to him, this action was carried out under Order No. 24 dated 26/11/1446 AH and the ruling of the Nimroz city court.
Hemmat stated that the items included salt, non-food products, and some smuggled goods, and that the monitoring process would continue in cooperation with the health commission. He urged merchants to refrain from importing smuggled, expired, and low-quality medicines and to contribute to public health preservation.
The local administration emphasized that market supervision in Zaranj city and Nimroz districts would continue. However, the methods of handling and publicly destroying some goods, especially those connected to cultural activities, remain a subject of debate and concern among parts of the community.
