Taliban have warned residents of District 13 of Mazar-e-Sharif that women could be arrested if they fail to comply with their dress requirements, sources said, signaling a possible expansion of enforcement measures following recent detentions in Herat.
Sources told Amu TV that officials from the Taliban’s Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice recently met with residents of District 13 in Mazar-i-Sharif and informed them that morality police patrols would begin operating more intensively across the city starting Sunday.
The issue was raised in a meeting of Taliban morality police with representatives of the District 13 of Mazar-e-Sharif City, the sources said.
They added that Taliban told the resident that any woman or girl found in public without “appropriate Islamic dress” could be detained.
Residents said the warning was also distributed through notices posted on shops, bakeries and in residential alleys by Taliban morality enforcers.
The reported measures come days after Taliban detained more than 30 women and girls in Herat over alleged violations of dress regulations, an incident that sparked rare public protests and drew widespread international criticism.
The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan confirmed that at least 30 women were detained in Herat between June 6 and June 7 by officials from the Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice and Taliban police.
The detentions triggered protests in Herat’s Jebrail area on June 9. UNAMA later confirmed that at least one boy was killed by gunfire during the demonstrations and that several others were injured. The mission has said it is investigating reports of a second fatality.
Human Rights Watch, UN Women, Richard Bennett, the UN special rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan, and other UN experts have condemned the arrests and expressed concern over the use of force against protesters.
Sources in Kabul said similar warnings have also been delivered to residents in parts of the capital.
According to those sources, Taliban officials recently met with community representatives in District 13 of Kabul and informed them that morality police patrols and monitoring of women’s attire would intensify in the area beginning this week.
The Taliban have not publicly announced a nationwide campaign targeting women’s dress. However, the reported warnings in Mazar-i-Sharif and Kabul have fueled concerns that Taliban may be expanding enforcement efforts beyond Herat.
The Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice has become one of the Taliban’s most powerful institutions since their return to power in August 2021. The ministry oversees enforcement of restrictions affecting women’s dress, movement and participation in public life.
Women in Afghanistan are already subject to sweeping limitations, including bans on secondary and university education, restrictions on employment and requirements governing travel and public appearance.
The recent detentions in Herat and reports of increased enforcement elsewhere have heightened fears among many Afghan women, who say the measures further restrict their ability to participate in daily life.
Taliban have offered conflicting accounts of the Herat arrests. While some of their officials initially denied that women had been detained over dress-code violations, Noor Ahmad Islamjar, the Taliban governor of Herat, later acknowledged the arrests and said that the women had been detained for failing to comply with their hijab requirements.
Taliban have not responded publicly to reports of similar warnings being issued in Balkh and Kabul.
