Former Afghan Jihadi Leader Siaf Criticizes Taliban’s Criminal Code

Abdur Rasul Siaf, a former Afghan jihadi leader, has criticized the Taliban administration’s recently published criminal code. He urged the rulers of the group to ‘fear God’ in implementing religious rulings and cautioned against misrepresenting Islamic concepts. On Sunday, January 24, Siaf posted on his Facebook account emphasizing that Islam is a religion of justice and fairness, fundamentally based on protecting the vulnerable segments of society. According to him, if religious texts grant any special privileges, these should be for the ‘strangers and the downtrodden’, not for the ‘influential, wealthy, and lords’—a statement implicitly expressing concern over perceived unjust tendencies in the Taliban’s criminal policies. These remarks come amid widespread reactions and concerns among religious scholars and social activists about the Taliban’s criminal and judicial codes, with critics arguing they contradict the justice-centered spirit of Islam and the fundamental rights of the country’s inhabitants.