The Global Torture Index, in its latest report for 2026, has classified Afghanistan as a “very high risk” country in terms of torture, arbitrary detention, and human rights violations. The report states that under Taliban rule, torture, arbitrary arrests, the repression of women and minorities, and restrictions on civil liberties have significantly expanded.
According to the report, since seizing power, the Taliban have violated their international commitments, including the United Nations Convention Against Torture. It further notes that the Taliban have effectively legalized various forms of torture and ill-treatment in some of their domestic laws, and that the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice plays a significant role in monitoring people’s behavior, dress, and social activities, as well as in carrying out arbitrary arrests.
The report states that more than 80 Taliban decrees have institutionalized discrimination against women and children and have formalized gender-based violence and even torture. It also adds that in the Taliban’s 2026 criminal procedure law, certain forms of domestic violence have been legalized.
According to the Global Torture Index, Taliban security forces use torture, physical and psychological abuse, enforced disappearances, and humiliating treatment during arrests, detention, and interrogations, which is why the situation has been assessed as “very high risk.”
The report further notes that the Taliban widely employ torture and other forms of ill-treatment, including arbitrary detention, public flogging, and executions. It states that individuals are detained even for issues such as their clothing, having a beard, or failing to observe hijab, and that alongside beatings, enforced disappearances, psychological torture, and constant surveillance, house raids and security searches are routinely conducted.
The report also assesses the right to protection from torture during detention as being at “high risk,” stating that detentions are carried out without due legal process, access to legal counsel is restricted, and there are reports of severe torture, sexual violence, and psychological abuse in intelligence detention facilities.
Additionally, the report indicates that the number of female detainees in Taliban-run detention centers increased from 840 in 2021 to 1,825 in 2025.
Writer:Saeed Sameer
