Shocking footage of Taliban stoning released official

Afghan security officials in Kunduz have released video footage of a man and woman being publicly stoned to death.

The pair are executed by the Taliban in Afghanistan's once-peaceful north over an alleged love affair.

The Taliban arrested the two, who were each engaged to be married to other people, at the request of their families after they tried to elope, said district police chief Hameed Agha.

Some Afghans still refer to Taliban courts for settling disputes, viewing government bodies as corrupt or unreliable.

A provincial government official said the footage was shot in August 2010 and marked a return to Sharia and capital punishments carried out under Islamic law.

Sharia prescribes punishments such as stoning, lashings, amputations and execution.

Despite the presence of more than 140,000 foreign troops, backed by 300,000 Afghan soldiers and police, the Taliban have managed to spread beyond their traditional strongholds in the south into formerly peaceful areas like Kunduz.