A hijab inspection, a slap, a warning letter: Inside three months of Taliban rule

Published 28 July 2026 · world

These are not isolated incidents – they are the routine texture of life for Afghans under Taliban rule this spring, according to a new report

These are not isolated incidents – they are the routine texture of life for Afghans under Taliban rule this spring, according to a new report from the UN mission in the country, UNAMA, that catalogues – in granular and often chilling detail – how the space for women, minorities and dissent keeps shrinking. Between April and June 2026, UN human rights monitors recorded arrests over hairstyles, public floggings for broken fasts, and the 296th consecutive day that Afghan women have been barred from UN premises simply for being women. Tweet URL Proper hijab and male guardians Between 6-8 June, at least 30 women were arrested in Herat for wearing “improper hijab”. Days later, the de facto Ministry of Hajj and Religious Affairs announced that “Observing hijab” would be the topic of the sermon on Friday, 19 June. Imams received a 10-page document explaining that a hijab should cover the entire body except the eyes, be loose and thick, and contain no adornments or fragrance. During the reporting period, shops and health clinics were instructed not to allow women to enter without a male guardian, or mahram. This was even enforced at shops in Kandahar city that sell cosmetics and other products geared to women.

In another incident, in Logar province, a woman received a verbal warning for buying groceries without a mahram, while the male shopkeeper was slapped and taken to the local Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice office. He was released hours later following intervention by community elders and after signing a letter guaranteeing that he would not sell items to unaccompanied women in the future. Marriage, education and work In April, the authorities issued a new Code on Judicial Separation of Spouses which makes a woman’s marriage dependent on her guardian’s permission. The decree also “implicitly sanctions child marriage” and “imposes extreme obstacles” on women seeking divorce or separation, the report said. The authors also recalled that since 7 September 2025, Afghan women have been barred from entering UN premises nationwide - whether as staff, contractors or visitors - marking 296 days as of 30 June. Women and girls also remain excluded from higher education following a December 2022 ban. © WFP/Isheeta Sumra Barred from university Although public university entrance examinations were held nationwide in May and June, only 120,000 male prospective students participated and no women or girls took part. Other developments related to education included school inspections by Taliban civil servants from the so-called Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice office.