Azadi Briefing

Welcome to The Azadi Briefing, an RFE/RL newsletter that unpacks the key issues in Afghanistan. To subscribe, click here.

I'm Frud Bezhan, regional desk editor for Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. Here's what I've been tracking and what I'm keeping an eye on in the days ahead.

The Key Issue

The Institute for Economics and Peace has named Afghanistan as the least peaceful country in the world for the sixth consecutive year.

In its 2023 Global Peace Index released on June 28, the international think tank said “violence is still widespread throughout the country,” although it noted that the “level of conflict has dropped considerably” since the Taliban seized power in 2021.

“Afghanistan recorded the largest reduction in deaths from armed conflict in 2022 with conflict-related deaths falling 90.6 per cent, from almost 43,000 to just over 4,000,” the index said.

But the think tank noted that the security situation in Afghanistan remains uncertain and terrorism continues to be a “serious security concern.”

The index warned that there was a “strong possibility” that the conflict between the Taliban and the rival Islamic State-Khorasan (IS-K) extremist group could escalate. IS-K remains the biggest threat to the Taliban, carrying out deadly attacks against Taliban officials and the country’s religious minorities.

The index also noted that a growing number of local militias have joined the Afghan National Liberation Front and the Afghan National Resistance Front, armed groups that have been waging a low-level resistance to Taliban rule.

The Global Peace Index, which ranks 163 countries, measures the state of peace according to three values: the degree of militarization, the level of security, and the extent of ongoing conflicts.

Why It's Important: Since regaining power, the Taliban has repeatedly claimed that it has eliminated IS-K in Afghanistan and boasted about restoring law and order in the war-wracked country.

But the continuing violence in Afghanistan, as documented by the Global Peace Index as well as the United Nations, has busted the Taliban’s narrative that it has established complete security.

The UN mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) said in a June 27 report that it had documented significant civilian casualties in Afghanistan since the Taliban takeover, despite a sharp reduction compared to previous years.

UNAMA said there were 3,774 civilian casualties, including 1,095 people killed in violence in the country, between mid-August 2021 and the end of May 2023.

Mohammad Naeem Ghayor, an Afghan security expert, told RFE/RL’s Radio Azadi that although the security situation in Afghanistan has improved, there is not “real peace and stability” in the country.

What's Next: The Taliban is likely to face growing internal resistance to its rule. The militants have rolled back many rights, carried out widespread human rights abuses, and sidelined many of the country’s ethnic and religious groups.

The militant Islamist group has also been undermined by widening internal rifts and international isolation.

The Week's Best Story

Muslims across the world celebrated Eid al-Adha this week. But the festivities were muted in Afghanistan, where many people are struggling to survive amid a devastating humanitarian and economic crisis. The Taliban’s severe restrictions on women’s freedom of movement, including a ban on them going to public parks, also hampered celebrations.

What To Keep An Eye On

Amnesty International called on the Taliban to release Matiullah Wesa, a widely known and respected education rights activist who was beaten and arrested by the Taliban in Kabul on March 27.

“Today marks three months since education rights activist Matiullah Wesa was arbitrarily arrested by the Taliban de-facto authorities,” Amnesty said in a tweet on June 27.

“His continued detention is a clear violation of the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly under international human rights law. The Taliban de- facto authorities must immediately and unconditionally release Matiullah Wesa.”

His arrest on charges of “anti-regime activities” sparked an international outcry.

In a written message to Radio Azadi, Attaullah Wesa said his brother’s arrest was unjustified and demanded that the Taliban release him.

Why It's Important: Wesa’s continued detention has served to highlight the Taliban's intensifying crackdown on dissent.

In recent months, the militant group has specifically targeted educators, including Rasul Parsi, a former university professor in the western city of Herat, who had written Facebook posts critical of the Taliban.

In February, the Taliban arrested former university professor Ismail Mashal after he distributed books to women and girls in Kabul to protest the Taliban’s ban on women attending university and girls above the sixth grade going to school. Mashal was later released.

That's all from me for now. Don't forget to send me any questions, comments, or tips that you have. You can always reach us at azadi.english@rferl.org.

Until next time,

Frud Bezhan

If you enjoyed this briefing and don't want to miss the next edition, subscribe here. It will be sent to your inbox every Friday. Please note that the newsletter will not be issued next week due to public holidays. It will return on July 14.

Welcome to The Azadi Briefing, an RFE/RL newsletter that unpacks the key issues in Afghanistan. To subscribe, click here.

I'm Abubakar Siddique, a senior correspondent with RFE/RL's Radio Azadi. Here's what I've been tracking and what I'm keeping an eye on in the days ahead.

The Key Issue

The Taliban has carried out another execution as it continues to implement strict Islamic punishments the group sees as central to its drive to enforce Shari'a law.

Under the concept of qisas, or retributive justice, a man was publicly killed in the eastern province of Laghman on June 20 for allegedly killing five members of a single family.

The killing of the man -- identified only as Ajmal, a resident of Guldara, near Kabul -- was the second retributive execution carried out by the Taliban in the past seven months. The group has sought to recreate its infamously brutal emirate of the 1990s, when such punishments turned its government into an international pariah.

In November, Taliban Supreme Leader Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada ordered the return to qisas and hudood punishments, which essentially allow "eye-for-an-eye" retribution and corporal punishments for offenses considered to be in violation of the boundaries set by God. Since then, hundreds across the country have been publicly flogged, stoned, or had body parts amputated for crimes such as theft and adultery.

These punishments, however, have met strong criticism and skepticism from both human rights watchdogs and Afghans. Islamic scholars have questioned whether the Taliban has met the stringent conditions required by Islamic law in implementing such harsh punishments.

Why It's Important: The Taliban has defied international criticism in implementing capital and corporal punishments, which its leaders see as a key benchmark of their commitment to impose Islamic Shari'a law.

But in the absence of an overall governance framework capable of addressing the economic, social, and political challenges and grievances of Afghans, such punishments alienate the Taliban from the people it rules and the international community alike.

The Taliban's failure to establish a professional judiciary makes selling the implementation of qisas and hudood punishments as a symbol of justice difficult. The Taliban's courts are comprised of Taliban members or pro-Taliban clerics, most of whom are not formally trained for the roles.

Meanwhile, international human rights watchdogs, the United Nations, and the wider international community have opposed the use of capital and corporal punishments by the Taliban. Some campaigners advocate for international sanctions to remain in place as long as the Taliban metes out these punishments.

What's Next: The Taliban is unlikely to give up on Islamic punishments. But the rapid rise of executions, stonings, amputations, and other penalties will continue to overshadow the group's second stint in power.

For Afghans, these punishments underscore the Taliban's excesses and oppression. At the same time, the world will see them as symbols of the group's cruelty and misrule.

Given that the Taliban is unlikely to reform, some Afghans are bracing for mounting instances of capital and corporal punishments as the group fails to address the continuing economic and humanitarian crises in Afghanistan.

The Week's Best Stories

Afghanistan's Taliban rulers are trying to control thousands of rural classrooms. These are part of the Community Based Education program funded by Western donors through the UN and international NGOs. The Taliban's efforts have left the future of more than 500,000 Afghan children enrolled in these education centers hanging in the balance.

What To Keep An Eye On

In a briefing to the UN Security Council, the UN envoy to Afghanistan warned that the Taliban's restrictions on Afghan women and girls have made it "nearly impossible" for the international community to recognize the ruling group's government.

On June 21, Roza Otunbaeva, the head of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), told the UNSC that the restrictions against Afghan women "cost the Taliban both domestic and international legitimacy."

Since returning to power in 2021, the Taliban has banned women from education and employment, effectively denied them any public role in society, and imposed strict limitations on their mobility and appearance.

Why It's Important: The damming assessment will dampen the Taliban's hopes that its isolated hard-line government will soon be recognized. The group has gradually extended its control over Afghan diplomatic missions in neighboring countries as it continues to press for recognition.

Yet no country or international organization has recognized the Taliban government.

Otunbaeva's statement lays out that the Taliban's only path to international recognition starts with rescinding its harsh restrictions on Afghan women.

While the Taliban had promised more moderate policies in the years leading up to its return to power, its leaders have doubled down on the recreation of a totalitarian clerical regime since seizing power.

Until next time,

Abubakar Siddique

If you enjoyed this briefing and don't want to miss the next edition, subscribe here. It will be sent to your inbox every Friday.