Taleban ban Persian New Year

The Taleban authorities in Afghanistan have banned celebrations of the traditional New Year, or Nowruz, and warned that people who do celebrate it will be branded infidels.

Many people across West Asia mark the day, which coincides with the spring equinox on Wednesday.

But the Minister for Fostering Virtue and Suppressing Vice, Mohammad Salim Haqqani, said celebrating Nowruz was linked to non-believers, and good Muslims should hate it.

Nowruz has its roots in Zoroastrianism - the ancient religion of pre-Islamic Persia.

Earlier this month, the Taleban attracted international criticism for destroying two huge statues of Buddha.

Afghanistan has a large Persian-speaking minority, and Nowruz was part of the official calendar until the Taleban took Kabul in 1996.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service