PANJSHIR, Afghanistan — Taliban compelled shopkeepers in Panjshir province to display their white flag on their storefronts in commemoration of August 15, the day marking the fall of the previous government to the Taliban.
According to local sources, the Taliban used “pressure and force” to ensure compliance with their directive.
Shopkeepers were warned that failure to follow the order would result in the closure of their businesses, the sources said.
Similar reports emerged from Daikundi province, where Taliban issued a written notice to shopkeepers in the provincial capital, Nili, on Tuesday, instructing them to raise the Taliban flag on August 15. The letter warned that any shopkeeper who disobeyed would have their business closed for three days.
Taliban refers to August 15, the day they took control of Afghanistan in 2021, as a day of “victory.”
However, in the three years since their return to power, Taliban has barred girls from attending school and imposed severe restrictions on the rights and freedoms of women and girls.
Meanwhile, Afghanistan’s economy has been in deep crisis, with unemployment reaching record highs.
