A man and a woman who allegedly had an adulterous affair have been stoned and killed in the northern Afghan province of Kunduz

The punishment happened in a crowded bazaar in the Taliban-controlled village of Mullah Quli. The Taliban have not commented on the public killing, but it was confirmed by local officials and witnesses. The Taliban also reportedly flogged and killed a pregnant widow in western Baghdis province. Mohammad Ayub, governor of Imam Sahib district in Kunduz, said that the Taliban had brought the man and woman to the local bazaar, where they stoned them before a large crowd. The Taliban asked the villagers to attend the stoning through an announcement on loudspeakers in the mosque, two witnesses from Mullah Quli said. "There was a big crowd of people," one said. "The Taliban made the women wear black clothes and the men were made to stand. The Taliban started throwing stones. We were also asked to throw stones. After a while, the Taliban left. The woman was dead but the man was still alive. Some Taliban then came and shot him three times. The Taliban warned villagers if anyone does anything un-Islamic, this will be their fate." The woman was 23 years old and the man was 28. A local tribal elder said that the couple had eloped and that the woman had been engaged, while the man was already married. A jirga (tribal council) met and decided that the couple could come back to the village if the man paid compensation. "The man returned after he was assured that he wouldn't be harmed," said the elder. "The Taliban arrested them as soon as they came back."