By Rukhshana Media
A senior Taliban leader said in a public address that those who preach against the Taliban system of rule and engage in opposition must be punished by death, according to reliable sources with knowledge of the speech.
Neda Mohammad Nadim, the Taliban minister of higher education, made the remarks while speaking at the graduation ceremony of 33 students of the Ibrahim Nakhie religious center in central Kandahar’s Aino Mina township.
A local source, who asked to not be identified, told Rukhshana Media that Mr Nadim raised the matter in reference to the assassination of Dawood Muzamel, the governor of Balkh, but extended the definition of opposition to include anyone who spoke against the Taliban.
Mr Nadim said that he will not let anyone destroy the Taliban system and that “anyone who works against the system, whether it’s through talk or action, all of them are rebellions, and they must be killed.”
He did not name any individual or group, however, he said [they] “create problems for the people of Afghanistan with the conspiracy of strangers” and the Taliban is ready to suppress them.
According to the source, the religious center also had a school in Sangin district of Helmand province during the previous government which, since the Taliban takeover in August 2021, officially operates under the supervision of the Ministry of Higher Education.
After the Taliban regained power in Afghanistan, the group has notably paid special attention to religious and Deobandi centers throughout the country. It is believed that these centres are a focus as a source of future soldiers for the Taliban regime.
