• Afghanistan’s Taliban government has banned MMA, deeming it un-Islamic.
• The ban was attributed to perceived violence and risk of injury or death.
• MMA has not been recognized as an Olympic sport due to safety concerns.

Afghanistan’s Taliban government has banned mixed martial arts (MMA), declaring it un-Islamic, according to a statement from its sports authority on Wednesday.

Afghanistan’s morality police in the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice issued the order after investigating the sport’s compliance with Islamic law, or sharia, according to the statement and local media reports.

“It was found that the sport is problematic concerning sharia and it has many aspects which are contradictory to the teachings of Islam,” the Taliban government sports authority said in a statement.

“That’s why this decision has been made to ban mixed martial arts in Afghanistan.”

A sports authority official told local media that MMA was banned partly due to its perceived violence and the risk of injury or death.

Since returning to power in 2021, the Taliban authorities have implemented a strict interpretation of Islamic law. They recently ratified a morality law that formalizes many rules on behavior and dress, including a requirement that men must not wear shorts above the knee.

Martial arts are popular sports in Afghanistan. Of the 11 Afghans who competed at the Paris Games, either on the national team or the Refugee Olympic team, four were martial arts athletes.

MMA has not been recognized as an Olympic sport, partly due to safety concerns.

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