The United News of India apparently is wrong on this - the Taliban say that there's no requirement for Hindu-owned houses to have yellow flags.

Even so, it's all very disturbing, as are most cases where religion and state overlap. A friend who was in Saudi during the Gulf War told us about a woman soldier who had to pull a gun on two Saudi religious policemen when they threatened to kill her for being a woman and not wearing the "correct" clothes - she didn't actually shoot them, the threat of violence stopped them (stereotypical bully behaviour), but she got disciplined for it. All cultures with strong religious beliefs (including parts of the US) frighten me greatly - it shows how thin the veneer of humanity and rationality is when religious doctrine can be used to justify violence against others.

Graham.