The Hidden Crime: Documenting the Systematic Violence of the Taliban Against LGBTQ+ Individuals in Afghanistan (2021–2024)

The Rainbow Afghanistan Organization is proud to release its 17-page investigative report titled “The Hidden Crime.”

This report is the outcome of three years of field research, data collection, confidential interviews, examination of independent sources, and legal analysis concerning the situation of LGBTQ+ individuals under Taliban rule.

This report constitutes one of the first comprehensive and systematic documentations of organized violence, persecution, torture, detention, rape, and enforced disappearances of LGBTQ+ persons in Afghanistan following the collapse of the government in August 2021.

This document has been prepared for submission to international bodies, including the United Nations Human Rights Council, the European Parliament, the German Federal Foreign Office, members of the German Bundestag, UN Special Rapporteurs, the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), and global human rights organizations.

Purpose of the Report

This report has been developed and published with the following objectives:

• To document widespread and systematic human rights violations against the LGBTQ+ community in Afghanistan
• To provide credible, verifiable, and evidence-based findings to international institutions
• To raise alarm about the structural, systematic, and unprecedented crimes committed by the Taliban
• To offer policy recommendations to governments, international organizations, and human rights mechanisms

Background and Significance

Erasure of Rights and Identity

The Taliban recognize only two genders—“male” and “female”—and consider any other gender identity or sexual orientation to be a sin, a crime, and a moral threat. As a result:

• LGBTQ+ individuals are deprived of the right to life, safety, and human dignity
• Arrest, torture, rape, and even killings often occur with complete impunity
• Transgender individuals face heightened risk due to their visible identities

Violence, Persecution, and Death Threats

According to the findings of the past three years, the Taliban:

• Subject LGBTQ+ detainees to gang rape and sexual slavery inside detention facilities
• Use electric shocks, severe beatings, genital torture, and public humiliation
• Cause the disappearance of many victims following arrest
• Expose the families of victims to severe threats, intimidation, and reprisals

This pattern of violence is widespread, systematic, organized, and rooted in the Taliban’s ideological policies.

Structure of the Report

1. Religious Rulings and Punishments for Alleged “Sodomy”

The Taliban impose harsh religious punishments for same-sex relations, including:

• Stoning
• Crushing under collapsed walls
• Summary executions
• Public flogging and torture

A statement by the Taliban Supreme Court in May 2023 confirmed dozens of severe punishments, including Islamic hudud penalties, against individuals accused of same-sex relations.

2. Recorded Incidents of Violence

Based on verified and cross-checked data:

• At least 98 LGBTQ+ individuals across 14 provinces of Afghanistan have been punished, tortured, or executed over the past three years
• Many of these punishments were carried out in public and in the presence of Taliban members
• The real numbers are likely significantly higher due to extreme media censorship and suppression of independent monitoring

3. Testimonies of Torture, Rape, and Enforced Disappearance

This section includes direct testimonies from individuals who:

• Were tortured while in Taliban custody
• Were subjected to gang rape and sexual violence
• Were rejected or expelled by their families
• Were forced into hiding, displacement, or irregular migration

All names and sensitive information have been fully anonymized to ensure safety.

Recommendations

The report offers a set of recommendations addressed to:

• The UN Human Rights Council
• European governments and states supporting global human rights
• International monitoring and accountability mechanisms
• Humanitarian agencies and refugee protection organizations

Significance of the Publication

This report is released at a time when the LGBTQ+ community in Afghanistan is experiencing the most severe wave of threats, torture, and disappearances in the past two decades.

“The Hidden Crime” provides, for the first time, precise, verified, and authoritative evidence of these abuses and fills critical gaps in existing international documentation.

Access to the Report