There are Westerners, some of them quite respected and influential, who will see this news item somewhere (not here, of course) and assume that the Taliban are misunderstanding Islam, which they are certain is a religion of peace and tolerance that rejects violence and slavery. If you show such people the justifications in the Qur’an and Sunnah for slavery and violence, they will wave them away with a reference to there being a multitude of interpretations of such passages, although they will not bring forth any quotation or other evidence of an interpretation of Islam that rejects slavery and violence. Or else they will say that the Bible is full of terrible passages as well, despite the fact that no one today is pointing to the Bible to justify violence or slavery. They will point to sinister and deceptive “moderate Muslims” who have no following among Muslims as if they were evidence of an Islamic mainstream that rejects all this. As The Man With No Eyes once said, some men (and women) you just can’t reach.
“The Taliban’s penal code also explicitly recognises slavery, using the term ghulam (slave) in several articles.” The term ghulam (plural, ghilman) appears in the Qur’an: “And there go around them, waiting on them, servant boys [ghilmanun] of their own, as if they were hidden pearls.” (52:24) This is one basis for the Afghan practice of bacha bazi, the sexual enslavement of young boys. Many in Afghanistan will see the new penal code’s use of the term as legitimizing that practice.
“Afghan Resistance Group Condemns Taliban Penal Code As Medieval,” Afghanistan International, January 23, 2026:
The Supreme Council of National Resistance for the Salvation of Afghanistan says the Taliban’s newly approved penal code would push the country into conditions “far worse than the Middle Ages”.
In a statement released on Friday, the council said the move was deliberate and aimed at “distorting the image of Islam in the eyes of global public opinion”.
The opposition body said the penal code governing Taliban-run courts “openly violates human dignity and religious and sectarian equality”, warning that several of its provisions institutionalise discrimination and abuse.
Referring to the contents of the code, the council said the Taliban have imposed explicit religious discrimination by recognising followers of only one sect as Muslims and branding adherents of other sects as heretics.
It added that the code divides society in what it described as a primitive and medieval manner, “effectively legitimising slavery, defining women as concubines and husbands as masters and owners of women, and imposing a range of degrading and inhumane punishments on society”….
According to a document obtained by Afghanistan International, Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada has endorsed the penal code, which contains 119 articles.
The code grants judicial institutions the authority to sentence opponents and critics to death. Under Article 4, Clause 6, citizens are even permitted to personally punish individuals if they witness what is described as a “sin” being committed.
The Taliban’s penal code also explicitly recognises slavery, using the term ghulam (slave) in several articles.
“Human Rights Report: Taliban Approves Judicial Law Legalizing Slavery, Violence Against Children,” Shia Waves, January 24, 2026:
A new report issued by the human rights organization Al-Tasamuh states that the Taliban, through the adoption of new judicial principles, have not only formalized slavery but also permitted physical violence against children while ignoring restrictions on other forms of repression.
According to the report, the law—comprising 119 articles and signed by Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada—defines only limited forms of prohibited violence, such as bone fractures or skin lacerations. Beating, psychological humiliation, and sexual abuse are not criminalized in the absence of such injuries.
Article 48 of the law allows for the punishment of children aged ten and above on religious grounds. The legislation also entrenches a system of slavery through repeated references to the term “slave” in multiple provisions, in violation of international law and human rights conventions. The law further authorizes the killing of “rebels,” a category that includes activists and political opponents, and enables arbitrary violence against individuals accused of committing “sins.”
The report notes that the law classifies citizens into four social classes, with penalties varying according to social status. It draws clear distinctions between religious scholars, nobles, and lower classes, undermining the principle of equality before the law.
Religiously, the law applies exclusively to followers of the Hanafi school of jurisprudence, criminalizing any deviation from it. It also bans cultural practices such as dancing without providing clear definitions, opening the door to arbitrary arrests….
vlamp says
HEY LOOK ALL CAPS AGAIN. JUST FOR MY FRIEND.
PEDOPHILIA MADE LEGAL. EXPECT THOSE CASES TO INCREASE AGAINST NON MUSLIM CHILDREN..THEY ARE A SICK CULT. MORE REASON TO DEPORT THESE PPL HOME.IF THERES NO ACTUAL WARS HAPPENING THEYRE SAFE TO RETURN..THEY NEED TO BE DEPORTED BACK. WAR SAFETY NOT AN ISSUE.
somehistory says
I don’t read comments in all caps….it’s a rude form of writing. So any thing you may write which has some value, is lost. And probably not just on me.
Troybeam says
Not really, having all caps will have people reading because small print can be ignored.
Large caps just may get the point across, it also may help people see what is written if they cannot find their glasses.
So many points to writing in caps. bravo
Ralph says
I do not question whether large print or small. I concentrate on the message.
somehistory says
To each his own. I have some difficulty with my eyes, but I do not read anything in all caps. All of the words just run together. And…..it is considered rude to write in all caps.
The poster may be writing something important, but it’s lost on those who don’t like the *shouting.*
gravenimage says
This message is probably aimed at me. I suggested on another thread that vlamp consider not using ALL CAPS–and he called me an asshole–or ASSHOLE, if you prefer. Very odd. And I know that Jihad Watch has removed posts in all caps, because this reads like shouting.
somehistory says
I guessed it was pointed at you, g, as I had read what you replied to him about all caps.
When caps are used sparingly, it makes those words with caps stand out. Beginning a new sentence, a new paragraph; or that the word is a proper noun.
I prefer not to try to read those with all caps.
Walter Sieruk says
Slavery, including sex slavery , is a heinous part of Islam is a topic that the apologists for that religion don’t like have people bring up .Nevertheless the reality is that slavery, inclining sex slavery, is part of Islam and ,of course slavery very demeaning. As one writer exposed that “Control of behavior and disregard for human life are key elements in Islamic ideology.”
The same author further revealed “When Islamic fundamentalist campaign to recruit new members for their fold, they invoke the alleged immorality in Western countries to attract listeners. , what is not discussed is the horrific treatment of women who are sold into sexual slavery….Women are not thought of as equals in Islamic countries ,they are thought of as property.” [1]
Likewise, a former Muslim had exposed in his book that “Slavery is recognized as an institution and slave is considered both a thing as a person.” [2]
In addition, two Christian writers in their book had also informs their readers that “Islam has enslaved more people than any other culture.” [3] Therefore Islam regardless of what the apologists for this religion do claim has no regard for human rights
[1] THEY MUST BE STOPPED by Brigitte Gabriel page 171, 181,182.
[2] THE ISLAM IN ISLAMIC TERRORISM by Ibn Warraq page 85
[3] Jesus and the Jihadis, by Craig A Evens and Jeremiah J Johnston page 125.
gravenimage says
+1
Huh?!? says
The U.S. must deport Islam from its shores. As always, praise the Lord and pass the ammunition. Vote! Vote! Vote!
Walter Sieruk says
Those Muslim savages of the Taliban, gladly accept Islam’s approval of slavery, as long as they aren’t the ones who are enslaved.
ploome says
hahahaha
all Harvard grads
lets give them green cards
or send them to Minneapolis
(you can’t make this up)
somehistory says
It isn’t just “medieval”…it’s demonic. “Doing the desires of their father, satan the devil.”
Westman says
Distortion, baloney, it’s a return to classical Islam.
The “Supreme Council of National Resistance for the Salvation of Afghanistan” is implying that they aware that certain demands and allowances of the Quran are completely questionable and insupportable by free intelligent people. Yet, of course, they will still claim the Quran is “perfect” and must not be altered.
This is perhaps the factor that makes so many Jihadists insane – holding contradictory and impossible religious demands, simultaneously.
WW2 demonstrated, clearly, that when Western freedom is at stake, not even civilians are spared as targets. We are better people today, we think, because we have defined rules and an international court. Nuremberg was a demonstration that the winners hang the losers. To quote Robert McNamara: “(Gen)LeMay said if we’d lost the war, we’d all have been prosecuted as war criminals.”
Islam should make no mistake that an attempt to rule the world is suicide. It has no chance of defeating China, Russia, or the US. Its most intelligent members are moving away from forbidding to infidels what it thinks is haram.
Islam desperately needs its own “savior”, as happened in Christianity, to officially abrogate its brutality and justifications for declaring the majority of humanity as enemies, only worthy of exploitation. It no longer has the power or intellectual capacity to enslave or defeat the world. It’s time to become a religion without political intentions or simply fade into Mythology.
gravenimage says
Spot on, Westman.
abu taleb says
Ban Islam forever because Islam allows (even encourages) slavery, pedophilia, murder, robbery, torture, lying, discrimination.
Do I miss something?
OLD GUY says
And they don’t like BACON.
ploome says
or dogs
OLD GUY says
They also don’t like BACON
Winston 101 says
This Afghan Islamic Government’s Laws are a good example of why Islam should be banned from the United States : Because Islam is a form of Government.
Islam is a form of Government that has religious aspects. There is no separation of Mosque and State in Inlam. Islam is the State.
Islam is in direct opposition to the U. S. Constitution and The Bill of Rights.
You cannot police Islam’s Government once it’s inside your country. (See the UK, France, Germany, et al.) It must be stopped at your country’s border. (See Poland and Hungary.)
gravenimage says
Afghanistan: Taliban approve law legalizing slavery, sex slavery, and violence against children on Islamic grounds
…………………………………………………….
There is nothing so Islamic as these atrocities–and the Taliban is all about imposing Islam.
Andrew Blackadder says
I have to wonder if these evil looking turbaned head old smelly farts were once Bachi Boys when they were kids and are now in power acting out their hatred at the world at large.
These Taliban pricks are THE most loyal of loyal to the actual teachings in the one book they all read so nobody should call them radical or moderate as they are just doing what a ”good muslim” is taught to do throughout their life.
islamism is nazism in a turban.