Mahbooba Faiz: Taliban’s new criminal procedure code introduces class-based justice and slavery terminology
16 Feb 2026
Mahbooba Faiz: Taliban's new criminal procedure code introduces class-based justice and slavery terminology
Mahbooba Faiz
Mahbooba Faiz, an Afghan-born lawyer based in Ireland, uncovers the detail of the Taliban’s new diktat on criminal procedure.
After nearly four years of legislative opacity and rule by decree, on 4 January 2026, the Taliban issued a new legal document in the Pashto language titled the “Criminal Procedure Code for Courts”, signed by their supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada.
The document is circulated to provincial-level courts across Afghanistan for implementation. It is compiled in three sections, 10 chapters, and 119 articles. The Code is presented as a framework for criminal adjudication.
The document amounts to a far-reaching instrument that reshapes criminal justice in the country. It expands judicial discretion, tightens ideological control over belief and expression, and establishes unequal treatment in sentencing based on social status rather than legal imperatives.
Although the code is described as “procedural”, the document contains provisions that regulate religious identity, authorise certain categories of punishment, and ignore certain types of crimes. It assigns enforcement powers not only to state authorities but — under some circumstances — to private individuals.
https://www.scottishlegal.com/articles/mahbooba-faiz-talibans-new-criminal-procedure-code-introduces-class-based-justice-and-slavery-terminology
