Afghanistan
Death penalty and prisoners' rights · Archive since 1999
Data card
- Legal status
- Retentionist
- Executions recorded in 2026
- 0
- Executions recorded in 2025
- 7
- First news item in the archive
- JANUARY 1, 1999 · Afghan law does not prohibit the execution of an individual...
- News items in the archive
- 560
Source: Hands Off Cain database, updated to 2026.
Afghanistan is classified as Retentionist in the Hands Off Cain database, updated to 2026. In 2026 the association recorded 0 executions in the country, against 7 the year before. The archive holds 560 news items on Afghanistan, from 1999 to today.
Latest news
- NOVEMBER 8, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
Libya, a former state sponsor of terrorism, is backing...
Libya, a former state sponsor of terrorism, is backing the US-led war on terror and trying to free eight Western aid workers on trial for their lives in Afghanistan
- NOVEMBER 7, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
The Taliban has executed a nephew of former mujahedin...
The Taliban has executed a nephew of former mujahedin commander Abdul Haq who was captured and hanged by the Islamic militia last month, family members said
- NOVEMBER 5, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
The German foreign ministry said that it was urgently...
The German foreign ministry said that it was urgently trying to contact eight aid workers accused by the Taliban of spreading Christianity among Afghans
- NOVEMBER 3, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
The Afghan Taliban authorities strongly warned all...
The Afghan Taliban authorities strongly warned all foreign journalist not to enter Afghanistan illegally, Afghan Islamic Press (AIP) reported
- NOVEMBER 3, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
Michel Peyrard, who slipped into Afghanistan to report...
Michel Peyrard, who slipped into Afghanistan to report on the US bombing and was arrested on October 9, was released and handed over to French diplomats along the Pakistani border
- NOVEMBER 3, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
Three unidentified men were executed by the Taliban...
Three unidentified men were executed by the Taliban Afghan authorities for treason
- NOVEMBER 3, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
TALIBAN HAND OVER FRENCH JOURNALIST
November 3, 2001: Michel Peyrard, who slipped into Afghanistan to report on the U.S. bombing and arrested last month, was released on Saturday and handed over to French diplomats along the Pakistani border.
- NOVEMBER 1, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
A jury at the Old Bailey, London's main criminal court,...
A jury at the Old Bailey, London's main criminal court, was given a graphic description of life inside Taliban-controlled Afghanistan by an alleged plane hijacker
- OCTOBER 30, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
Amnesty International condemned the summary and unlawful...
Amnesty International condemned the summary and unlawful execution of Abdul Haq on 26 October 2001, following his capture by the Taliban earlier that day
- OCTOBER 29, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
French Foreign Ministry said that Michel Peyrard, Paris...
French Foreign Ministry said that Michel Peyrard, Paris Match reporter who has been detained by Taliban since October 9 on charges of espionage, should be freed as soon as possible
- OCTOBER 28, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
Burhanuddin Rabbani, the political head of the Northern...
Burhanuddin Rabbani, the political head of the Northern Alliance and president of Afghanistan from 1992 to 1996, denounced Abdul Haq's execution
- OCTOBER 27, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
Taliban fighters have a chilling four-year history...
Taliban fighters have a chilling four-year history of atrocities, a United Nations human rights investigator said
- OCTOBER 27, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
Afghanistan's ruling Taliban said that the investigation...
Afghanistan's ruling Taliban said that the investigation against detained French journalist Michel Peyrard was nearly over and that the findings would be presented in court soon
- OCTOBER 26, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
A Taliban Foreign Ministry spokesman said that the...
A Taliban Foreign Ministry spokesman said that the Taliban executed key opposition leader Abdul Haq in Kabul
- OCTOBER 23, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
Afghanistan's Supreme Court said it cannot hold regular...
Afghanistan's Supreme Court said it cannot hold regular sessions in the trial of eight foreign aid workers accused of promoting Christianity due to chaos amid the U
- OCTOBER 23, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
In Jalalabad the top Northern Alliance commander, General...
In Jalalabad the top Northern Alliance commander, General [Mohammad Qasem] Fahim, arrested one of the important leaders of the alliance, [Islamic Unity leader] Professor Abdorrasul Sayyaf, after the allegation of killing [former Northern Alliance commande
- OCTOBER 22, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
Afghanistan's ruling Taliban authorities said they...
Afghanistan's ruling Taliban authorities said they executed five men for sabotage and spying on behalf of the United States
- OCTOBER 19, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
Taliban judges are expected to issue a verdict next...
Taliban judges are expected to issue a verdict next week in the trial of eight foreigners held in jail in Kabul since August on charges of spreading Christianity, their lawyer said
- OCTOBER 18, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
Michel Peyrard, the Paris Match journalist arrested...
Michel Peyrard, the Paris Match journalist arrested by the Taleban has spoken from captivity for the first time, saying he knew the risk before he slipped into Afghanistan
- OCTOBER 18, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
The lawyer for eight foreign aid workers on trial for...
The lawyer for eight foreign aid workers on trial for preaching Christianity in Afghanistan said he had lost contact with Kabul after the United States stepped up its air raids on the country
- OCTOBER 14, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
The trial of eight foreign aid workers accused of promoting...
The trial of eight foreign aid workers accused of promoting Christianity in Afghanistan resumed and their lawyer was set to present their defence after a one-day delay to translate his rebuttal, officials said
- OCTOBER 13, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
The trial of eight foreign aid workers accused of promoting...
The trial of eight foreign aid workers accused of promoting Christianity was immediately adjourned after the Supreme Court ordered the Pakistani defence lawyer to present his case in a recognised local language
- OCTOBER 11, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
Afghanistan's ruling Taliban militia charged a French...
Afghanistan's ruling Taliban militia charged a French journalist and two Pakistani colleagues with spying, a crime that carries the death penalty
- OCTOBER 11, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
President Jacques Chirac came to the defence of a French...
President Jacques Chirac came to the defence of a French reporter held by the Taliban and accused of spying after entering Afghanistan disguised as a woman
- OCTOBER 10, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
The French journalist who was captured disguised in...
The French journalist who was captured disguised in a burka after entering Afghanistan was pelted with stones as the Taleban paraded him through the streets of Jalalabad
- OCTOBER 9, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
Michel Peyrard, who works for the French news magazine...
Michel Peyrard, who works for the French news magazine Paris Match, and two Pakistani guides identified as Mohammed Irfan and Mukkaram Khan were arrested in the east of the country wearing a full-length women's veil, or burqa
- OCTOBER 8, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw warned the Taliban...
British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw warned the Taliban that the UK will hold them responsible for the safety of British journalist Yvonne Ridley
- OCTOBER 8, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
Afghanistan's ruling Taliban escorted a reporter for...
Afghanistan's ruling Taliban escorted a reporter for London's Sunday Express, Yvonne Ridley, to neighboring Pakistan after releasing her from a 10-day detention
- OCTOBER 7, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
Australia refused to consider any deal with Afghanistan...
Australia refused to consider any deal with Afghanistan to halt threats against the ruling Taliban in exchange for the release of eight foreign aid workers charged with promoting Christianity
- OCTOBER 7, 2001AfghanistanDEATH PENALTY
Anyone found guilty of spying for the US and preparing...
Anyone found guilty of spying for the US and preparing a rebellion against the Taliban faces the death penalty by the terms of a fatwa imposed since the USA began its bombing campaign on Afghanistan on October 7, 2001