KABUL
\nTaliban authorities have barred chess across Afghanistan until further notice over concerns it is a source of gambling, which is illegal under the government\u2019s morality law, a sports official said on Sunday. The Taliban government has steadily imposed laws and regulations that reflect its austere vision of Islamic law since seizing power in 2021.
\n\u201cChess in sharia (Islamic law) is considered a means of gambling,\u201d which is prohibited according to the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice law announced last year, sports directorate spokesperson Atal Mashwani told media. \u201cThere are religious considerations regarding the sport of chess,\u201d he said. \u201cUntil these considerations are addressed, the sport of chess is suspended in Afghanistan,\u201d he added.
\nMashwani said the national chess federation had not held any official events for around two years and \u201chad some issues on the leadership level\u201d.Azizullah Gulzada owns a cafe in Kabul that has hosted informal chess competitions in recent years, but denied any gambling took place and noted chess was played in other Muslim-majority countries. \u201cMany other Islamic countries have players on an international level,\u201d he told media.
\nHe said he would respect the suspension but that it would hurt his business and those who enjoyed the game. \u201cYoung people don\u2019t have a lot of activities these days, so many came here every day,\u201d he told media. \u201cThey would have a cup of tea and challenge their friends to a game of chess.\u201d
\nAfghanistan\u2019s authorities have restricted other sports in recent years and women have been essentially barred from participating in sport altogether in the country.
\nLast year, the authorities banned free fighting such as mixed martial arts (MMA) in professional competition, saying it was too \u201cviolent\u201d and \u201cproblematic with respect to sharia\u201d.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
KABUL Taliban authorities have barred chess across Afghanistan until further notice over concerns it is a source of gambling, which is illegal under the government\u2019s morality law, a sports official said on Sunday. The Taliban government has steadily imposed laws and regulations that reflect its austere vision of Islamic law since seizing power in 2021. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":478027,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-478008","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n