Foreign Nationals and the Death Penalty
Death Penalty Overview
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Afghanistan has been involved in a protracted war
for over 40 years. Since the early 2000s, with the
assistance of the international community, a new
constitution and legal system was established.
Although there has been a break from the
draconian executions carried out by the Taliban
prior to 2001, Afghanistan remains a retentionist
state. Capital punishment is legal and
implemented especially in the face of high-pro le
mass atrocities and heinous crimes. Some of these
crimes include terrorism, membership with terror
organisations (such as ISIS or the Haqqani group),
mass murder, and targeted assassinations.
According to Amnesty International, from 2010
until 2020, there were developments with regard
to the death penalty in Afghanistan. Amnesty
gures show that 6 individuals were executed in
2016, 5 in 2017, 3 in 2018, and no death sentences
were carried out in 2019 and 2020. In 2020 more
than 4 new sentences were handed down by the
courts, most imposed for terrorism-related
offences. By the end of 2020, there were 976
individuals known to be under sentence of death
in the Pul-e-Charkhi Prison in Kabul and the
detention facility in Bagram. In 2021, 2 people
were sentenced to death after the Kabul University
attack in November 2020. These 2 individuals were
charged for terrorism, membership with ISIS,
kidnapping, among other crimes.
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Afghanistan
According to Article 169 of the Afghan penal code,
after a death sentence has passed through the
Primary Court, Appeals Court and Supreme Court,
it must then receive the President’s of cial
authorisation for it to be carried out. According to
Article 170, the death penalty can be implemented
on 5 occasions: (1) Genocide, crimes against
humanity, war crimes, crimes against the state,
terrorism, and explosion, kidnapping and banditry
all of which results in the death of a person or
people; (2) Intentional homicide, within the remit of
the law above; (3) crime which results in bringing
partially or totally the lands of the Islamic Republic
of Afghanistan under the sovereignty of a foreign
state, or if there is an assault to the national
sovereignty, territorial integrity, or independence of
the country; (4) The collective sexual assault of a
woman; and (5) The collective assault of a man
which causes the death of the victim.