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Sharia Law
Sharia is the body of Islamic religious law derived from the Quran and the Hadith (the recorded sayings and actions of the Prophet Muhammad). Its application varies widely across Muslim-majority societies. The Taliban imposed an extreme and contested interpretation in Afghanistan (1996-2001 and from 2021), including restrictions on women's education and public life, prohibition of music and television, and corporal punishment for criminal offences.
Taliban
The Taliban is a Sunni Islamist political and military movement that emerged from Afghan Mujahideen factions in the early 1990s. Predominantly Pashtun, it was based in Kandahar and drew recruits from Pakistani madrasas. The Taliban captured Kabul in September 1996 and controlled most of Afghanistan by 1998, enforcing an extreme interpretation of Sharia Law. They were ousted from power by a US-led coalition after the September 2001 attacks on the United States but regained control of Afghanistan in August 2021.