According to Afghanistan International, reliable sources have reported that Mawlavi Bayazid Yun, the head of the analysis and review department within the Complaints Hearing Directorate of the Taliban’s Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice in Herat, has been arrested on allegations of an extramarital sexual relationship. Sources said that Taliban forces detained him earlier this week in a garden near Herat city.
Along with Bayazid Yun, four individuals close to him were also arrested at the same location. Sources further stated that a woman was also detained by Taliban forces along with the group.
According to the sources, the case of those arrested has been referred to Taliban courts for investigation. However, it remains unclear whether the accused have accepted or denied the allegations.
Bayazid Yun previously served as the head of the Complaints Hearing Directorate of the Taliban’s Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice in Herat before being appointed as the general head of the department responsible for analyzing and reviewing complaints within the same institution. He had previously claimed that his department had handled 55 criminal, legal, and abuse-of-authority cases within one month.
Sources describe Bayazid Yun as one of the youngest officials overseeing the Taliban’s morality enforcement body in Herat. They claim that after the Taliban returned to power, he joined the institution due to his father’s influence.
He is originally from Kandahar and had previously published articles in support of the Taliban, as well as writings on religious jurisprudence, in Pashto, Persian, and Urdu.
Sources also said that Taliban authorities in Herat are attempting to prevent the news of Bayazid Yun’s arrest from becoming public. According to them, the group is concerned about the potential impact of the arrest of a senior official from an institution that has detained dozens of women in recent months over allegations of not complying with the Taliban’s approved dress code.
Writer:Salima Aryaei
