The Taliban will shut down Afghanistan’s beauty salons next month in the regime’s continuing crackdown on women’s freedoms.
Mohammad Sadiq Akif, a spokesperson for the Ministry for the Prevention of Vice and Propagation of Virtue, announced the move on Tuesday, according to Reuters.
Women in Taliban-run Afghanistan have already been barred from entering gyms and public baths as well as amusement parks and public parks.
The Taliban in April banned women and families from patronizing restaurants with gardens in Afghanistan’s northwestern province of Herat because of concerns over gender mixing.
Females aren’t allowed to go to secondary school or college and have been excluded from public office. Women are not allowed outside for the most part without a guardian.
Beauty salons first sprouted up shortly after U.S. military forces gained control over Afghanistan in 2001. Since the Taliban returned to power nearly two years ago, many salons stopped operating and have boarded up their windows.
Western governments have criticized the Taliban’s restrictions on women and said it hinders the possibility of formally recognizing the Taliban government, according to Reuters.
But the Taliban has said that its treatment of women is in accordance with Islamic law and Afghan customs.
• Matt Delaney can be reached at mdelaney@washingtontimes.com.
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