Taliban lash 12 people before stadium crowd in AfghanistanISLAMABAD (AP) — The Taliban lashed three women and nine men in front of hundreds of spectators in a provincial sports stadium Wednesday, signaling the religious extremist group’s resumption of a brutal form of punishment that was a hallmark of their rule in the 1990s.The office of the governor of Logar province, south of the capital of Kabul, invited “honorable scholars, mujahideen, elders, tribal leaders and local people” to the stadium in the town of Pul Alam in Logar.Those being punished received between 21 and 39 lashes each, after being convicted in a local court of theft and adultery, said an official in the governor’s office who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not allowed to share details with the media.The official said hundreds of people attended the lashings and that a ban was imposed on taking photos and video.Court rules Dutch state liable for 2007 Afghan bombingRed Cross: Afghans will struggle for their lives this winterPakistan reopens border with Afghanistan shut over shootingAfghan official says 19 people lashed in northeast provinceSuch public lashings, as well as public executions and stonings for purported crimes, were common during the first period of Taliban rule, from 1996 until 2001 when the militants were driven out in a U.S.-led invasion."