Man convicted of murder in Afghanistan is executed in front of a packed stadium

The execution order was signed by the Taliban’s supreme leader, Emir Hibatullah Akhundzada, who lives in seclusion in his southern stronghold of Kandahar and rules the country by decree or instructions, the Supreme Court said in a statement.

According to the court, several judicial bodies examined the process “very thoroughly and several times” before execution.

The victim’s family was also consulted to find out whether they would grant a pardon and, after their refusal, the execution was ordered under the Islamic principle of “qisas” or the law of retaliation, said the same source.

At the stadium, a gun was given to a male family member, who shot the convict three times. In February, three men were executed in the same week, two in Ghazni in the east and one in Sheberghan in the north.

In December 2022 and June 2023 there were two more executions of men. They were all convicted of “murder”.