A double murderer had his throat slit before thousands of spectators in a sports stadium in the Afghan capital Kabul yesterday afternoon, witnesses said.
Mr Mohammad Daud, from the Khak-i-Jabar district of Kabul, was sentenced to death by a military court for killing two fellow villagers, Nasimullah and Samiullah, 40 days ago.
The Taliban supreme leader, Mullah Mohammad Omar, approved the sentence.
Mr Daud, who was blindfolded, offered his afternoon prayers on the soccer ground, laid down on the grass and was held by Taliban soldiers.
The father of one of the victims slit Mr Daud's throat in a second, using a large sharp knife, witnesses said.
Pleas for mercy from the crowd and some Taliban members, including the deputy prime minister, Mulla Hassan Akhond, were rejected. "The victim's mother licked the bloodied knife," Zabiullah, a witness, said.
"The shocked people pleaded for mercy, but it was refused," he said, adding that the huge stadium was half full.
The execution showed once again that the Taliban has not softened its stance on severe public punishments. As well as the execution of murderers, thieves face having their limbs chopped off in accordance with strict interpretation of Sharia law.
The last public execution in Kabul was about seven months ago, giving the impression that the Taliban had responded to international criticism of human rights abuses.