Fri Apr 11 15:25:58 UTC 2025: **Afghanistan Sees Highest Number of Public Executions Since Taliban Return**
KABUL, April 11, 2025 – Four men were publicly executed in Afghanistan today, marking the highest single-day execution toll since the Taliban regained power in 2021. The executions, carried out in sports stadiums across three provinces, bring the total number of public executions since 2021 to ten.
Witnesses reported that two men in Qala-i-Naw were shot multiple times by relatives of their victims. The Supreme Court confirmed the executions, stating the men were sentenced to retaliatory punishment (qisas) for murder after their cases underwent rigorous review. The court added that the victims’ families rejected amnesty offers.
Additional executions took place in Zaranj and Farah city. While some spectators expressed approval, Amnesty International strongly condemned the actions, calling them a “gross affront to human dignity.” The executions follow a similar event in November 2024, where a convicted murderer was executed publicly.
The Taliban government’s reliance on corporal punishment and the death penalty, including qisas, has drawn widespread international condemnation from the UN and human rights groups. The Supreme Leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada, ordered the full implementation of these punishments in 2022. Amnesty International’s recent report highlighted Afghanistan’s use of capital punishment, noting that proceedings often fail to meet international fair trial standards.
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