Al Arabiya: Taliban issues ruling banning Afghans from fighting abroad

The Taliban government has announced a series of religious rulings prohibiting Afghans from engaging in military activities abroad. The decrees, issued during a major gathering of religious scholars in Kabul on December 10, grant the government broad powers to enforce these decisions. 

The gathering, attended by Prime Minister Mullah Hassan Akhund and Chief Justice Abdul Hakim Shara’i, included nearly 1,000 religious scholars from across Afghanistan. The formal resolutions issued during the meeting outline binding directives that forbid any Afghan citizen from traveling abroad for combat or military involvement.

According to sources from Al Arabiya, the meeting was convened at the direct request of Taliban leader Mullah Hibatullah Akhundzada. The gathering, held under the auspices of Afghanistan’s highest religious authorities, also discussed the country’s ongoing commitment to preventing foreign use of Afghan territory for military purposes.

The official document obtained by Al Arabiya contains five key resolutions. Among the most prominent is the declaration that "no Afghan is permitted to travel to other countries for military or combat activities." The ruling obliges the Taliban government to prevent any Afghan attempting to leave the country for such purposes.

Additionally, the document reaffirms the Taliban’s vow not to allow Afghan soil to be used in any way that could harm other nations, a directive aimed at maintaining the country’s non-interventionist stance. The broad language of this ruling could potentially apply to both Afghan citizens and foreigners present in the country.

The document also stresses the duty of every Afghan to defend their homeland against external threats and reiterates the important role of religious scholars in guiding the nation’s political and social matters.

By Sabina Mammadli