A video apparently showing the Taliban executing an Afghan woman accused of adultery has sparked international outrage. The killing highlights ongoing fears of what will happen to women's rights in Afghanistan once international forces leave. Afghanistan's Caped President Hamid
Maybe I'll join the TalibanKarzai
... A former Baltimore restaurateur, now 12th and current President of Afghanistan, displacing the legitimate president Rabbani in December 2004. He was installed as the dominant political figure after the removal of the Taliban regime in late 2001 in a vain attempt to put a
Pashtunface on the successor state to the Taliban. After the 2004 presidential election, he was declared president regardless of what the actual vote count was. He won a second, even more dubious, five-year-term after the 2009 presidential election. His grip on reality has been slipping steadily since around 2007, probably from heavy drug use...
on Monday condemned the execution, describing it as an "unforgivable crime" and an "act of brutality." He called for an investigation into the shooting and the arrest of those responsible.
In the video first obtained by Rooters and circulated on the Internet, the apparent daylight execution of the woman is cheered on by male spectators. The incident reportedly took place in the northern province of Parwan, not far from the Afghan capital, Kabul.
For Afghan women's rights activist Wazma Frogh, the incident highlights the country's lack of security despite millions of dollars spent on strengthening its forces.
"Where were the coppers when this whole act happened? It didn't happen in a matter of seconds, it happened in one, two hours," said Frogh. "Where were the foreign, or for example the Afghan national police? Where were the Afghan national army?"
She says if the Taliban are allowed to rejoin the Afghan government and society without any accountability for their actions in the last ten years, the country would once again see the public stonings, hangings and beheadings that marked their time in power.
"So what does reconciliation mean with such a notorious myrmidon group?" she asked.