The Taliban have banned organ transplants, including hearts, kidneys and lungs, saying the practice is "un-Islamic".
This decision caused the anger of patients and doctors, who warn that thousands of Afghans will be affected by the ban, writes the editorial staff of Radio Free Europe (RSE) in English.
"I'm in big trouble," said Vahid, a resident of the northern province of Parwan, who has stones in both his kidneys and gall bladder.
"What should I do now?" adds Vahid, whose name has been changed for security reasons. "Doctors say a kidney transplant is the only way to cure me".
Rashid, a resident of the western province of Herat, points out that the Taliban ban will deny his sick relative the possibility of a kidney transplant.
"He is still waiting in the hospital, even though our village collected donations for his surgery," said Rashid, also using a pseudonym to protect his identity.
Bismala Ševamal, an Afghan surgeon based in Germany, emphasizes that organ transplants are a key part of modern medicine.
"Organ transplantation is an important way of saving lives," said Ševamal.
Organ transplantation is a common medical practice worldwide, including Islamic countries. Most organs are donated voluntarily before the death of the donor, while in some countries close relatives of patients at risk can donate their organs.
Booming organ trade
Although the sale and purchase of human organs is illegal internationally, this problem still exists worldwide.
In Afghanistan, widespread poverty has fueled the illegal trade in organs, especially kidneys, since most people can survive with just one kidney.
Due to the lack of laws regulating organ transplants, donors only needed to give consent to the doctor and hospital to perform such procedures.
In the province of Herat, this practice became so widespread that one settlement was nicknamed the "village of one kidney". Afghans struggling with extreme poverty were selling their kidneys in the settlement for about $1.500 per kidney.
After the Taliban took power in 2021, the economic crisis further worsened the already serious humanitarian disaster, which increased the organ trade.
The Taliban ban on transplants appears to be a reaction to the growing organ trade in Afghanistan. However, the decision will also affect patients who medically need a transplant.
The Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice announced on December 10 that the sale and purchase of human organs "violates human dignity and has no place in Islamic Sharia law."
However, Islamic scholars question the justification of this attitude of the Taliban.
Abdul Sabur Abbasi, an Afghan Islamic scholar, says several contemporary rulings by leading Muslim jurists allow voluntary organ donation for transplants.
"The donor must be an adult and of sound mind," Abbasi said. "And the recipient must benefit from the transplant."
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