The Taliban government's religious police chief says harsh punishments such as the death penalty and amputation of hands will now be repeated in Afghanistan.
Mullah Nooruddin Turabi, in-charge of prisons in the Taliban government, told the Associated Press (AP) that punishments such as amputation of hands were "necessary for security."
He said the sentences would probably no longer be given in public, as was the case under the previous Taliban regime in the 1990s.
However, he rejected criticism of public executions in the past, saying "no one needs to tell us what our laws should be."
Since taking control of Afghanistan on August 15, the Taliban have reiterated that their current rule will not be tougher than in the past. However, there have been reports of human rights abuses in various parts of the country.
Mullah Mohammad Yaqub, the Taliban's defense minister and son of former Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Omar, has acknowledged that despite the announcement of a general amnesty, there have been "revenge killings" of civilians by Taliban fighters.
In Herat on Thursday, Human Rights Watch warned that the Taliban in Herat were searching for working women outside their homes and restricting their freedom of movement as well as clothing restrictions. Are doing
In August, Amnesty International said Taliban fighters were involved in the killing of nine members of the Hazara community. Amnesty International Secretary-General Agnes Kalamard said the "horrific killings" were a reminder of the Taliban's past and a "terrible glimpse" into the future of their current regime. Is.A few days before the Taliban took control of Kabul, Haji Badruddin, a Taliban judge in Balkh, told the BBC's Sikandar Kirmani that he supported the Taliban's interpretation of harsh punishments in Islamic law.
"It is clear in the Shari'a that those who are unmarried and have sex with a non-mahram, whether it is a boy or a girl, are punishable by 100 lashes in public," he said. But those who are married and have sex with someone else should be stoned to death. In the same way, whoever steals and is found guilty, his hand should be cut off.
These hardline and conservative views are shared by some hardline Afghans.
Now, however, the Taliban are seeking to establish ties with the international community and are trying to balance their conservative views at the grassroots level. The Taliban have tried to present a positive image to the international community since coming to power.
Mullah Nooruddin Turabi, known for his harsh punishments, was severely punished in the previous Taliban regime in the 1990s if anyone was caught listening to music or shaving his beard. He told the BBC that harsh sentences would continue, but that the Taliban would now allow them to watch TV, use mobile phones and take photos and videos.
Turabi, who has been on the UN sanctions list for harsh punishments and actions under his previous government, said Taliban cabinet ministers were consulting on whether the punishments should now be made public. But they will soon come up with a 'policy.'
During the 1990s, executions were carried out in public at Kabul's sports stadium or on the main Eidgah grounds. In the then Taliban government, Mullah Nooruddin Turabi was the Minister of Justice and the head of the Taliban's religious police.
"Everyone criticized us in the stadium for public executions, but we never said anything about their rules and punishments," he said in a recent interview.
It may be recalled that the Taliban had also demanded to attend the UN General Assembly in New York this week. German Foreign Minister Heiko Moss said "although it is important to keep in touch with the Taliban, the UN meeting is not the right opportunity."
The United States, which is part of a committee that approves the demand, has said it will not make a decision before next week's meeting.
