Thousands watch as victims' relatives shot two men to death in a stadium in Ghazni yesterday

‘Carrying out executions in public adds to the inherent cruelty of the death penalty’ - Livia Saccardi

Responding to a double public execution by the Taliban in Afghanistan yesterday, Livia Saccardi, Amnesty International’s South Asia Deputy Regional Director, said:

“We oppose all executions as a violation of the right to life. The Taliban has been repeatedly carrying them out publicly which is a gross affront to human dignity as well as a violation of international laws and standards and cannot be tolerated.

“Carrying out executions in public adds to the inherent cruelty of the death penalty and can only have a dehumanising effect on the victim and a brutalising effect on those who witness the executions. The protection of the right to a fair trial under the Taliban`s de facto authority remains seriously concerning.

“Amnesty reiterates that the Taliban de facto authorities must immediately halt all executions and abolish the death penalty and other cruel, inhuman, or degrading punishments.

“It’s high time that the international community and the UN up the pressure on the blatant human rights violations by the Taliban and help ensure that international safeguards are respected in Afghanistan.”

Relatives fire the shots

The Taliban carried out a double public execution at a stadium in the city of Ghazni in southeastern Afghanistan. Thousands watched the shooting of the two convicted men as the victims’ relatives fired the gunshots. The two executed men were identified as Syed Jamal and Gul Khan, who were allegedly responsible for the stabbing to death of two people in separate attacks.

Amnesty has previously condemned the resumption of public executions in Afghanistan after the Taliban takeover in 2021.