In its latest restriction on religious freedom, the Taliban's Ministry of Higher Education has ordered all private universities in Afghanistan to remove religious books that do not conform to the Sunni Hanafi sect it follows.
Speaking to RFE/RL's Radio Azadi On December 22, Mir Zafaruddin Ansari, a lecturer at one of the private universities, confirmed that the ministry's guidance department had sent a letter to all the private universities.
He said the letter urged them to remove all books that "oppose the Hanafi jurisprudence or can foment opposition to its tenets."
The Taliban has ordered libraries "to remove books belonging to the Shi'ite sect, Hizb ut-Tahrir, and Salafists," he said.
Shi'a make up nearly 15 percent of Afghanistan's population and are the second-largest Islamic sect after Sunnis. Hizb ut-Tahrir is a contemporary Islamist group that was banned in many countries for its extremist beliefs. Salafists are a sect within Sunni Islam.
"I think a government delegation will supervise the removal of these books and punish those who fail to act on it," Ansari said.
A student in one of the private universities in the Afghan capital, Kabul, opposed the move.
"This will limit our efforts to learn about other religions and sects," he said.
Since the Taliban's return to power two years ago, rights watchdogs and members of the religious minority communities in Afghanistan have accused the group of discrimination and persecution.
Leaders of the tiny Salafist sect allege that the Taliban has tortured and persecuted its members by accusing them of supporting the IS-Khorasan, a splinter of the Islamic State group.
Some members of Afghanistan's predominantly Shi'ite Hazara ethnic group have accused the Taliban of systematic discrimination by preventing them from freely practicing their faith.
Most members of Afghanistan's once thriving Sikh and Hindu minority had already fled the country before the Taliban returned to power. Those still living in the country say they are struggling with strict restrictions imposed on them.
Afghanistan's last Jew, Zalon Simintov, fled the country soon after the Taliban seized power in August 2021.