Residents of Herat say Taliban enforcers have intensified the arrest of women for failing to wear the dress prescribed by the group, with detentions reported across several crowded areas of the city.
Residents told Afghanistan International that officers from the Taliban’s Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice have increased their presence over the past week in busy parts of Herat and have detained women for wearing dresses that Taliban deem as inappropriate.
Local sources said that on Wednesday that Taliban morality police arrested several women in different parts of the city for wearing Manto. Witnesses said that before noon on the same day, Taliban officers also detained a number of women near Herat’s central hospital for not wearing the hijab required by the authorities.
One woman told Afghanistan International that she witnessed Taliban morality police beating a woman in the Pul-e Rangina area because she was wearing a manto.
According to reports, Taliban enforcers have deployed personnel at Pul-e Rangina, Cinema Square, Golha Square, Darb-e Iraq and other busy areas of Herat to monitor women’s dress.
The Taliban have previously detained and beaten women in Herat, including female health workers, for not wearing Burqa. Some women in the city continue to wear Arabic-style hijab and mantos, despite Taliban directives.
The Taliban have also barred women without Burqa from accessing government services in Herat city and in some districts of the province. Videos obtained by Afghanistan International show Taliban morality police preventing women from entering Herat’s central hospital because they were not wearing Burqa.
In earlier incidents, Taliban officers reportedly held several female health workers inside the hospital for hours until Burqas were brought for them from outside.
