Hundreds of Afghans have been detained for sporting Western haircuts, trimming their beards and violating face-covering rules as part of the Taliban’s latest brutal crackdown
At least 443 arrests were carried out by the Taliban’s morality police from July to September, according to a new United Nations report.
The detentions were mainly linked to alleged violations of the Taliban’s rules surrounding men’s hair and beards and women’s dress codes.
In one case, two barbers were detained for a month in August for allegedly trimming men’s beards and giving their customers ‘Western’ haircuts.
The UN also documented more than 50 instances of Taliban morality police arresting, detaining or cautioning women – including young girls – accused of violating face-covering requirements over the same period.
On July 10 in the city of Herat, morality police detained 10 women for not wearing chadors – a large, full-body cloak worn by some Muslim women.
Separately, a 13-year-old girl was detained overnight for not complying with hijab requirements, while a man was detained because his 12-year-old daughter was not wearing a burqa.
The crackdown also targeted people who failed to attend prayers and played or listened to music, according to the report.
The newly reported figures come as the Taliban has been ramping up its psychological abuse in Afghanistan in a bid to enforce its strict Sharia law rules.
Follow Us on Facebook – @LadunLiadi; Instagram – @LadunLiadi; Twitter – @LadunLiadi; Youtube – @LadunLiadiTV for updates
