Taliban Public Execution: Two Murderers Machine-Gunned in Front of Thousands at Football Stadium

Taliban authorities have publicly executed two men convicted of murder by machine-gunning them through the back in front of a crowd of spectators.

The murderers were on Thursday, February 22, executed by multiple gunshots to the back in Ghazni city after Supreme Court official Atiqullah Darwish read aloud a death warrant signed by Taliban Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada.

‘These two people were convicted of the crime of murder… after two years of trial in the courts of the country, the order has been signed,’ Darwish said.

Thousands of men gathered in the stadium to witness the execution. Families of the convicted men’s victims were also present. 

The Taliban administration in Kabul has not been officially recognised by any other government since it took power in 2021 and imposed an austere interpretation of Islam.

Akhundzada ordered judges in 2022 to fully implement all aspects of Islamic law – including ‘eye for an eye’ punishments known as ‘qisas’.