Is Afghanistan's Taliban government actually Sunni and are they right?

They're definitely deo overall. Deos have raised funds for them in the past, even in the west pre 9/11. The deos of Pakistan and India claim them as their own and dilly Hussain had recently visited Afghanistan and reported that they're deo as well. Not to say everyone in the organisation is a deo but no doubt their leaders, who are madrasah graduates/teachers, at least are.

 

Yes I agree and I am not with the Deobandi teachings at all. I meant to say just how Deobandi laymen are not considered kafirs (unless they openly say they're ok with blasphemies) that is how it seems like for the taliban because i haven't heard anything like that from them. But I think we know very little about them in this regard.

Okay, the quote you gave from Shaykh Asrar Rashid is new to me and that was exactly what I was looking for, statement from a Sunni scholar about Taliban and their Sharia Law. Jazakallah brother

Edit: I just found this statement from Shaykh Asrar Rashid, according to him they're most likely hold a middle-ground

 

Shaykh Asrar Rashid is not the only person who has stated that the Taliban are enforcing a corrupted version of Sharia. Others have also stated that the Taliban have diluted Sharia law with man-made tribal legal interpretations, see here and here. A disclaimer from me- I do not necessarily agree with everything that is written in the 2 articles which I have linked, I have only linked them to verify what I am saying and I am not saying that the articles are 100% true in what they are claiming.

 

I don't understand. I didn't say that every Taliban member has committed blasphemy. I said that they may have been taught blasphemy. The blasphemous statements of the Deo elders are written in books, which can be taught at Deobandi Madrassas. Even agreeing with a blasphemous statement is Kufr, and believing that the 4 Deo elders who committed blasphemy are Muslims is also Kufr. The difference between Deobandis and Ahle Sunnah is in terms of Aqidah or creed, not Furu, or matters that can be differed upon. If you accept Deobandi teachings, i.e. the beliefs of the Deobandis, then you cannot be Sunni in Aqidah at your core.

Well, that's the criminal law which is enforced in Aceh, which is a part of Indonesia. As for the Taliban's criminal law, this is what Shaykh Asrar Rashid has said about it.

 

I am not sure about Naqshbandi Haqqanis so won't comment on that and the channel that you mentioned here it's his intro of first 10 seconds that's why there is music, but his channel is inactive for a long time now so we can't tell him to remove the music now.

Coming back to the topic. Even though I they might be following Deobandi Ulema in some areas I don't believe they're people who outright do blasphemy and use rude wordings to describe the Prophet ﷺ like brother Abdullah said. So they could have Deobandi teachings but at core their aqeeda might be Sunni.

But Allah knows the best. I am still concerned about whether or not their implementation of Sharia Law is true and not "harsh". Like this one

 

Well, I didn't say that every last member of the Taliban is a Deobandi. I said that the Taliban is officially a Deobandi organization, and there is no disputing this. Just go to the Wikipedia page of the Taliban and you will find ample sources that confirm this. What I said about the Taliban is nothing compared to the condemnation of the Taliban and their supporters I have seen from other Sunnis- which are along the lines of this:

Most of the Taliban members are known to have been students of Darul Uloom Haqqania and Jamia Uloom ul-Islamia- both of which are Deobandi Madrassas, which teach their students Deobandi beliefs. Obviously it is not possible to know if every member of the Taliban has Kufr beliefs, but it is certainly likely they were taught the Kufri Deobandi Aqidah and blasphemy at the two aforementioned Madrassas. Also, the Taliban were studying at those Madrassas at the time in which Wahhabi funding and influence in the region was at its peak.

Which Afghan Ulema? I have heard that the senior Ulama of Kabul call ibn Taymiyyah Shaykh al-Islam. Afghan people, scholars and laymen, are divided into a few sects, including Naqshbandis, Deobandis, Barelvis, Wahhabis and Shias. If you find some Ulema in Afghanistan praising Ala Hazrat, this has got nothing to do with the beliefs of the Taliban.

The situation is not that complicated. The Taliban is a De Facto Deobandi organization, but this does not mean that aren't one or two members who do not identify as Deobandi. As I mentioned earlier, Deobandis have recently undergone rebranding, so it is not surprising if a couple of Taliban members here and there start celebrating Mawlid, opposing Wahhabi beliefs, or even the old Deobandi beliefs. But the status of the organization will not change unless their is a total reformation, whereby Deobandism is completely disavowed.

 

I don’t think it’s as simple as this.


Many members of the Taliban have also studied in Barelwi madaris across Pakistan, so to categorize all of them as strictly Deobandi oversimplifies the reality.


Even if many of them did study in Deobandi institutions, who’s to say they also adopted their kufri beliefs or followed them in such matters? And who’s to say they’re even familiar with the Kufr of the four elders to the extent that would make them culpable for it?


It’s also worth noting that Afghan ulema have been heard praising Ala Hazrat and expressing reverence for his scholarship, which further complicates attempts to paint them all with the same brush.


The situation is far more nuanced, and while their affiliations may reflect influences from Deobandi institutions, their broader framework cannot be reduced to a single label.

 

I advise you not to believe everything you hear or see- especially on the internet. What you heard about was most likely this: Taliban 2021 Mawlid un Nabi ﷺ, this video has music for the first ten seconds, but has none after that. If it was that video, then know this- the uploader of this video is a so-called Naqshbandi Haqqani. Naqshbandi Haqqanis are not real Naqshbandis, and are double agents who pretend to be part of Ahle Sunnah wal Jamat, while they are in fact associates of all kinds of deviants and disbelievers. I revealed how they support Deobandis and share beliefs with them here. If you want to know what Naqshbandi Haqqanis actually are, see here.

Now as for the uploader of that video, it is clear he is spreading falsehood and taking things out of context. This is the full video from a Deobandi channel, and the description clearly states that the individual in the video is a Deobandi called Abu Hudhaifa Mohammad Hassan Hassaan.

You may feel confused by what you are reading, however this is something which I have been seeing for ages- the Deobandi rebranding. Faraz Rabbani for example, permits the celebrating of Mawlid, Zameel has said that Istighatha is not Shirk, and I even saw an Afghan Taliban member going against Wahhabis, "Panjpiris", and Ibn Taymiyyah. As for the Taliban, both the Pakistani Taliban and the Afghan Taliban are Deobandi, and they are not from Ahle Sunnah even if they permit Mawlid, apply Sharia law and are against Wahhabis. The Taliban studied in Deobandi Madrassas in Pakistan and Afghanistan, which were Saudi funded at the time, even though today the Taliban and Deobandis are against Saudi Arabia and Wahhabism- go figure. The times in which we are living in are confusing many, and we must ask Allah to keep us safe and upon the Maslak of Ahle Sunnah wal Jamat.

 

This question has been lingering in my mind for so long and I had no place to ask it.

I see conflicting opinions on this. A lot of the general public (Muslims) here in India believe that "Taliban is right because they applied the Sharia Law, they are Sunni, and the media just shows them completely evil because they follow Islam in the true way".

Another thing I heard is that Taliban of Pakistan & Taliban of Afghanistan are different. Of course the Afghanistan Taliban struggled under the US invasion and their fight was right and that they don't fear death, but is their current government doing the right thing?

On the flip side I don't see any statement from the Taliban itself. No social media, no answers to the media that accuses them of women oppression. That makes me even more confused thinking women might actually be oppressed over there but there's no clarity from their side that this is not the case.

I think people might be divided about this political debate but I really want to know if they are right or not. Recently I heard that they celebrated Mawlid-un-Nabi which again makes me think they're right, but are they?