Qantara, 23 March 2026
This article on the German Middle East focussed website by Jan Ritter analyses the new Taleban penal code, quoting from Kate Clark’s AAN analysis of the document and quoting AAN’s Thomas Ruttig. It emphasises that
[a]ccording to an analysis by Kate Clark of the Afghanistan Analysts Network (AAN), the new penal code deals primarily with what are known in Islamic law as “ta’zir punishments.” These are not explicitly defined in either the Quran or the Hadiths. Rather, they are discretionary and decided by a judge or ruler—in this case, the “Imam,” the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, Hibatullah Akhundzada, who also personally signed the law.
Despite this statement, the article argues – see also its title – that the new code has turned Afghanistan into a “four-classes society.” (The code stipulates in its Article 9 that four categories/’classes’ – “scholars,” “elite,” [in the original: ashraf, better: the ‘nobility’] “middle class,” and “lower class” – are prescribed different types and severity of punishment in the case of the same crime by the social standing of the offender.
It remains unclear whether that’s a ta’zir-specific stipulation or reflects a general worldview of the Taleban ulema.
Thomas Ruttig is quoted as saying that he sees the new penal code as a further step toward consolidating the emirate’s power. It aims to solidify the Taleban’s political rule and further transform Afghanistan into an Islamic state. “He emphasises the particularly relevant role of the ulema, the Islamic legal scholars, whose authority would be strengthened by the law and who [in the Taleban’s view, alone] possess the necessary Sharia knowledge to religiously legitimise the intended transformation.”
PS/
Also in his memoir quoted in a recent AAN report, former PDPA politician Sultan Ali Keshtmand uses the term ‘ashraf’ for a social category when describing his rural childhood.
Revisions:
This article was last updated on 25 Mar 2026
