Afghanistan: ‘alarming’ rise in use of public flogging says UN report

The Taliban publicly flogged four people, including a woman, in eastern Afghanistan this week on charges of “running away from home” and “same-sex relations”.

It is the latest example of the country’s de facto rulers meting out corporal punishment for crimes according to the Taliban’s strict interpretation of Sharia law.

In his new report on the human rights situation in Afghanistan, UN Special Rapporteur Richard Bennett – recently banned from entering the country – said there had been an “alarming” increase in the group’s use of public corporal punishment.

Between January and August 2024, according to the country’s top court, more than 270 individuals were punished for crimes including homosexuality and aiding a woman’s escape from home.

Bennett also said he had heard multiple accounts of sexual violence against women in detention who were arrested for wearing “inappropriate” or “incorrect” hijabs.