Convicted murderer publicly executed by 13-year-old boy in packed stadium

Two men await public execution. (Image: Getty)

A convicted Afghan murderer was publicly executed by the Taliban in a packed sports stadium. The condemned man was found guilty of taking part in a gun attack that left 10 people dead.

A statement on Tuesday by Afghanistan's Supreme Court confirmed the execution had taken place in front of a crowd at a sports venue in Khost. The court said he had been sentenced to "retaliatory punishment" for killing a man. Officials claimed the case had been examined "very precisely and repeatedly" and that the victim's family had rejected pleas for clemency.

People leave a sport's stadium following a public execution (Image: Getty)

According to local sources, the man was executed by a 13-year-old boy, a member of the victim's family.

"The families of the victims were offered amnesty and peace, but they refused," the statement said.

The execution brings to 12 the number of men publicly put to death since the Taliban returned to power in 2021, according to an AFP tally.

In the run-up to the execution, authorities had urged the public to attend, distributing official notices that were shared widely. The executed man was alleged to be one of several gunmen who opened fire on a house in January 2025, killing 10 people, including three women.

The judicial killing was roundly criticised by Human Rights groups, who accused the Taliban of engaging in "inhumane" behaviour.

In a post to his X social media account before the sentence was carried out, the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Afghanistan, Richard Bennett, said such acts were "inhumane, cruel, and an unusual punishment, contrary to international law. They must stop."

Previously, in October, an Afghan was found guilty of murdering a man, and his heavily pregnant wife was executed by a member of the victim's family.

Four men were also publicly put to death in April at sports stadiums in three separate provinces.

Execution orders are signed by the Taliban's reclusive Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada.

Akhundzada ordered judges in 2022 to fully implement all aspects of the Taliban Government's interpretation of Islamic law.

This includes "eye-for-an-eye" punishments known as "qisas," allowing for the death penalty in retribution for the crime of murder.