HERAT, Afghanistan — Women running women-only cafes in Herat say the Taliban have threatened to close their establishments, dealing another blow to their efforts to maintain financial independence and create safe spaces for women.
The cafes, primarily operated by students and female entrepreneurs, serve as a vital source of income and a rare refuge in a city where opportunities for women are increasingly scarce under Taliban rule.
According to sources, Taliban officials from the Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice have raided the cafes over the past three days, warning owners to cease operations immediately.
Currently, five women-only cafes are active in Herat. Some cafe owners say these businesses became their lifeline after universities were closed to women.
“I spent years working to get into university, but after the closures, I lost everything I had worked for,” said one cafe owner. “I invested in this cafe as a last hope to support myself and other women, but now the Taliban are trying to take even this away.”
Escalating restrictions on women
Women in Herat say the Taliban are systematically tightening restrictions, leaving few avenues for social interaction or economic survival.
“The cafes were the only places we could gather with friends,” said Nargis, a Herat resident. “On Monday, while we were at a cafe, Taliban officials came in and aggressively ordered the owners to shut down, saying women aren’t allowed to work. We’re exhausted by this relentless oppression.”
In western Afghanistan, women say the Taliban’s enforcement of new morality laws has intensified restrictions.
According to several women, Taliban officials deny entry to government offices for women not wearing a full burqa and forbid employees from providing services to women without a male guardian or wearing a burqa.
“The restrictions are unbearable,” said Sara, a resident of Badghis Province. “Even in offices like passport services or courtrooms, they won’t assist you, even if you’re fully covered. Instead of solving people’s problems, they just create more.”
Global silence on Taliban policies
Over the past three years, the Taliban have issued about 80 edicts restricting women’s freedoms, barring them from education, employment, and public spaces.
Women in Herat and across Afghanistan say the international community has remained largely silent, failing to take meaningful action against the Taliban’s escalating policies of repression.
“We feel abandoned,” said one cafe owner. “The world watches as the Taliban strip us of every right, and no one steps in to stop it.”
