Islamabad: The Taliban have detained a famous Afghan fashion model along with three colleagues. The Taliban has accused them of disrespecting Islam and the Holy Quran.
Ajmal Haqiqi is known among Afghans for his fashion shows, You Tube clips, and modeling events.Haqiqi appeared handcuffed in videos posted Tuesday on Twitter by the Taliban’s General Directorate of Intelligence (DCI).
In one widely circulated and contentious video, Haqiqi laughs when his colleague Ghulam Sakhi, who is known to have mental health issues, speaks Arabic verses of the Quran with a comical voice. Sakhi is well known for having a speech impediment that he uses for humour. Once the video went viral, the Taliban decided to detain Haqiqi and his associates.
“I apologise to the Afghan people, to esteemed religious scholars and to the government of the Islamic Emirate,” Haqiqi said. He was seen standing with three other detained colleagues, including Sakhi. All but Sakhi wore light brown uniforms.
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Haqiqi already had apologised in a separate video before he was detained. “My message to all YouTubers and the youth active in the media is to seriously avoid making any insults to Islamic values,” he added.
Taliban officials didn’t immediately comment on the case. It is unclear what legal measures Haqiqi and his associates will face.
The Taliban claim they rule strictly according to Islamic law. They consider criticism and anything perceived as disrespectful of Islam as a punishable crime.