Afghan official: Woman accused of adultery stoned to death

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) - A 22-year-old Afghan woman was stoned to death by men identified as Taliban insurgents after she was accused of adultery, an Afghan official said Wednesday.

The woman, identified only as Rokhshana, was forced to stand in a deep hole in the ground during the Oct. 24 attack in a village in remote Ghor province of western Afghanistan, said Abdul Hai Khateby, spokesman for the governor.

The village, about 45 kilometers (28 miles) north of Ghor's capital Firozkoh, is controlled by Taliban insurgents "who implement their own barbaric laws," Khateby said.

In video posted online purportedly showing the attack, about a half-dozen men stand around the narrow pit, pelting the woman with rocks while a larger group of men sit on the ground nearby and watch. The video could not be independently verified.

While Ghor officials blamed the Taliban, the 14-year insurgent war in Afghanistan is often used as a coverall for a wide range of criminal behavior, including revenge killings, kidnapping for ransom and extortion.

The war has entrenched traditional and religious values in many parts of Afghanistan's vast rural hinterland. Although stoning is illegal under the Afghan constitution, it's seen as a legitimate punishment under Sharia law.

Incidents of stoning are unusual but not unheard of in Afghanistan, where women are the main victims.

"This is not the first such incident and it won't be the last," said Silai Ghafar, spokeswoman for the Solidarity Party which advocates for women's rights.