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Inside Herat, Where a Taliban Campaign Targets a Cosmopolitan Outpost
The New York Times • • general
Key Points:
- Taliban leader Sheikh Haibatullah Akhundzada has intensified control across Afghanistan, notably enforcing strict dress codes and religious practices in cities like Herat and Mazar-i-Sharif where Taliban support is weaker.
- In Herat, morality police have arrested dozens of women for clothing deemed inappropriate and men for beard length, creating a climate of fear that has led many women to avoid leaving their homes.
- Public protests against these restrictions have occurred but were met with Taliban crackdowns, further suppressing dissent in the region.
- Residents and activists describe Herat, once relatively more liberal, as now experiencing severe intimidation, with women facing restrictions on education, employment, and travel similar to the rest of the country.
- Critics warn that the Taliban’s increasingly harsh measures risk destabilizing Afghanistan’s diverse society by pushing it toward potential upheaval.
