Taliban Carry Out Public Execution Before Thousands in Khost

Taliban Carry Out Public Execution Before Thousands in Khost
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A Taliban spokesman said on Tuesday that an estimated 80,000 people gathered in a stadium in Afghanistan’s eastern Khost province to witness the public execution of a man convicted of killing 13 members of a family, Amu TV reported. The individual, identified by officials as Mangal, was accused of murdering the family in the Ali Shir and Terezio districts roughly ten months ago.

According to local sources, the execution was carried out by a 13-year-old boy whose relatives were among those killed. Taliban officials reportedly asked the boy if he wished to forgive the convicted man; after he declined, he fired the fatal shot.

The Taliban supreme court stated that the case underwent reviews in primary, appellate, and final courts before being approved by the group’s leader. It added that the convicted man was originally from Sanjak village in Paktia’s Syed Karam district but had been residing in Khost.

Human rights organizations reiterated long-standing concerns about the Taliban’s judicial processes, citing a lack of transparency and fair trial standards. Richard Bennett, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan, condemned the execution as “inhuman” and urged the Taliban to end public and retributive killings. This marks the eleventh judicial execution by the group in over four years.