Fox News reported that on Monday, the Taliban in Afghanistan’s Herat province restricted the entry of families and women to restaurants with gardens or green spaces.

The decision was made in response to religious leaders’ complaints about gender mixing in such settings. According to officials in Afghanistan, the curbs have been implemented due to either gender mixing or women allegedly not wearing the hijab. Currently, the restriction only applies to restaurants in the Herat province with access to green space.

A word from Afghan Officials

According to officials in Afghanistan, the ban on outdoor dining only applies to establishments in Herat that remain open to men. According to Fox News, Baz Mohammad Nazir, a deputy official from the directorate of the Ministry of Vice and Virtue in Herat, denied media reports that all restaurants were closed to families and women and dismissed them as propaganda.

Since women were banned from working at UN agencies, 3,300 male and female employees have stayed home, according to the organization.

The situation of Afghan women has only gotten worse since the Taliban took control of the country in August 2021. Women in the country cannot hold leadership positions and are not permitted to work or travel without a male companion.

This year, despite their pledge to reopen all schools on March 23, the Taliban closed secondary schools for girls. The timing of these schools’ reopening and the duration of the ban are still unknown.