Taliban ban women from restaurants and green spaces in Afghanistan's Herat

The Taliban administration has prohibited families and women from restaurants with gardens and green areas, such as parks, where men and women could meet.

                Taliban ban women from restaurants and green spaces in Afghanistan's Herat 

The Taliban have prohibited the entry of families and women into restaurants with gardens or green spaces in the northwestern province of Herat in Afghanistan. This comes even as the group, which came into power in August 2021, continues to impose curbs on women under its rule.

The latest move is a result of several complaints from religious scholars and the public about the mixing of genders in such places, according to an official. The outdoor dining ban is only applicable to establishments in Herat, where such premises are open for men. The curbs are in place as women are not wearing the hijab (Islamic headscarf) properly, according to authorities.

Not all restaurants were barred for families and women, said Baz Mohammad Nazir, a deputy official from the Ministry of Vice and Virtue’s directorate in Herat, while denying media reports of the same and calling them "propaganda", according to an Associated Press report.

The official said the ban was restricted only to restaurants with green areas, such as parks, where men and women could meet. "After repeated complaints from scholars and ordinary people, we set limits and closed these restaurants," he said.

Azizurrahman Al Muhajir, who is head of the Vice and Virtue directorate in Herat, said, "It was like a park but they named it a restaurant and men and women were together. Thank God it has been corrected now. Also, our auditors are observing all the parks where men and women go."

Furthermore, Nazir also denied reports that DVD sales of foreign movies, music and television shows were banned in Herat. He claimed that shopkeepers were advised not to sell such material as it contradicted Islamic values, the Associated Press report said.

Nazir said those shopkeepers who did not follow the rules saw their shops shut. He also denied reports that internet cafes were closed down in Herat. He clarified that children were barred from gaming arcades due to unsuitable content.

A few games insulted the Kaaba, the cube-shaped structure in Mecca's Great Mosque towards which Muslims turn when offering their prayers and other Islamic symbols.

"Internet cafes, where students learn and use for their studies, are necessary and we have allowed them," Nazir further said.

The Taliban, which seized power after US-led forces withdrew from Afghanistan after two decades of war, has tightened controls over the freedom of women. Girls beyond sixth grade and women have been barred from entering classrooms and universities respectively.

Women are also banned from taking up job opportunities, including those at the United Nations. They are also not allowed to visit public spaces such as gyms and parks.