UN experts call on Afghanistan to end public executions and punishments

Ten United Nations human rights experts on Friday called on the Taliban authorities to end public executions and punishment by whipping, including at mass ceremonies, after such practices began to be reported in Afghanistan in recent weeks.

The de facto Afghan authorities “must immediately put an end to all forms of cruel and degrading punishment”, the experts, including the UN special rapporteur for Afghanistan, Richard Bennett, said in a statement.

The first reported public execution since the Taliban returned to power in August 2021 took place in the western town of Farah on 7 December, three weeks after the authorities ordered the resumption of capital punishment for certain crimes.

In parallel, since 18 November, around 100 people, both men and women, have been sentenced to between 20 and 100 lashes, often in ceremonies held in stadiums and in the presence of senior officials and the public.

Executions and public corporal punishment “violate the principles prohibiting torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment,” insisted the UN statement, which expressed doubts about the legitimacy of the trials in which the convicts were sentenced.