Taliban's New Laws: Afghan Women Face More Restrictions, Fear Intensifies

The Taliban's new laws ban women's voices and bare faces in public, intensifying restrictions to combat vice and promote virtue. Approved by supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, these laws cover aspects of daily life and impose severe limitations on women's freedoms. The Ministry of Vice and Virtue oversees their enforcement.

Afghanistan's Taliban leadership has enacted stringent new laws aimed at combating vice and promoting virtue, significantly restricting women's freedoms. Approved by supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, these laws were issued on Wednesday.

The regulations encompass various aspects of daily life, including public transportation, music, celebrations, and personal appearance. Article 13 mandates full body veiling for women in public, while Article 17 prohibits the publication of images of living beings, threatening press freedom. Article 19 bans music and the mixing of unrelated men and women, also limiting female solo travel.

With the Ministry of Vice and Virtue at the helm of enforcement, the United Nations has raised concerns about the resulting climate of fear and intimidation, especially for Afghan women and girls.

(With inputs from agencies.)