Photo: amutv In a controversial and restrictive move, the Taliban’s head of court in Balkh province has issued a decree banning the publication of images of living beings, including humans and animals, in the media; a decision that has sparked a wave of concern and anger among journalists, media organizations, and freedom of expression activists. This new order is a continuation of the Taliban’s series of strict measures against media freedom, art, and imagery in Afghanistan; a group that since its return to power in August 2021 has step by step tightened the space for media and cultural activists. Journalists in the province consider the Taliban’s decree the end of media activity. A number of local journalists told Zan News that such a decision not only goes against the norms of journalism but is also interpreted as “the complete silencing of the people’s voice” and “the erasure of the human face from daily reality.” One of the journalists in Balkh, who did not want to be named, said: “When you erase the faces of people, it is as if you have erased the people themselves. How can we narrate war, poverty, or even joy without images?” The ban on publishing images of “living beings” covers a wide range of content; from news photographs and journalistic portraits to television documentaries, visual reports of markets, agriculture, schools, and even religious programs. However, it is still unclear whether this order also applies to archival images and imported content from global media. Meanwhile, local media had already been under increasing pressure to remove music, censor women’s faces, and practice self-censorship in their news content. The Taliban, relying on their particular and Salafi-oriented interpretation of Islamic Sharia, have repeatedly taken a stance against visual arts and broadcast media; but critics say that what is enforced under the name of “Sharia” is less rooted in religion and more a tool for imposing domination, suppressing diversity, and erasing rival narratives. Nevertheless, international organizations supporting journalists, human rights institutions, and even some religious scholars have repeatedly described this measure as another step toward the “total Talibanization” of society. A media expert in Kabul told Zan News: “The Taliban are gradually cleansing Afghanistan’s visual identity; and this in an era when image is the first language of global communication.” The End of Faces, the Beginning of Darkness The Taliban’s new decision to ban images of living beings in the media of Balkh is a warning symbol of the path this group has taken; a path that instead of rebuilding the country leads to a return to darkness, the erasure of people, and the silence of the media. Afghanistan is once again on the brink of silence; this time, not only through silencing the voices of journalists, but through erasing the faces of the people.

Photo: Wakil Kohsar/AFP/Getty Images via VOANews In a new decree issued by Taliban officials in Kandahar province, all female street vendors and shopkeepers are required to wear the burqa (chadari) while working in the market. This order, which has recently been implemented, has sparked widespread reactions among women traders. Many of these women say that wearing the burqa while working not only violates their personal freedom but also creates obstacles for daily activities and interaction with customers. Zarghona, one of these women, told Zan News: “They have imprisoned us under the burqa. This is no longer shopkeeping, this is imprisonment.” Despite these concerns, the Taliban have insisted on enforcing the decree, calling it part of “preserving Islamic values.” Meanwhile, critics say this decision is part of an increasing trend of restricting women’s presence in public spaces and delivers a serious blow to families whose main breadwinners are women. Social analysts, however, warn that such restrictions further distance women from economic and social activities and may lead to wider unemployment and poverty.

Photo: ALI KHARA | REUTERS via JapanTimes In the latest repressive action by the Taliban, women’s voices in shops have been banned. The group’s Department for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice in Herat has warned women that when buying goods they must not speak loudly, but instead signal to the seller to convey their needs. This decision has sparked a wave of anger and despair among women and human rights activists in Afghanistan. Women in Herat consider this ban the “most humiliating” form of social repression. One woman living in Herat told Zan News: “Even the right to speak has been taken from us. We are no longer human, only a shadow of existence that must remain silent, muted, and invisible.” The ban on women’s voices is a continuation of the Taliban’s deeply misogynistic policies which, since their return to power, have step by step pushed women out of social life through the closure of girls’ schools, the removal of women from government offices, and severe restrictions on movement and dress. Farida, another girl under a pseudonym, has also complained about this action by the Taliban and considers it the elimination of women from society. “At this point, the only thing left is for the Taliban to come and say you are women, please do not breathe, because there is no other ban that has not been imposed on us for being women.” While the Taliban are trying to present themselves on the international stage as a stable and negotiable government, the issuance of such decrees once again shows that there has been no change in the ideological nature of this group. The Taliban not only do not believe in gender equality but also consider the presence of women in any form a threat to their patriarchal order. This comes as human rights organizations have previously described the Taliban’s bans against women and girls as a clear example of gender apartheid, and have warned about the intensification of restrictions against Afghan women. Nevertheless, the reaction of the international community has so far remained limited to official statements and expressions of concern, with no effective pressure being applied on the Taliban. Meanwhile, women’s rights activists say that in a marketplace where women must remain silent even to express their basic needs, nothing remains of human dignity. Sharara Karimi, one of the women’s rights activists, told Zan News: “With these bans the Taliban both undermine the dignity of women and imprison women within their decrees. In the system of this group, being a woman means being a prisoner, while the women themselves live abroad.” The Taliban’s decree banning women’s voices is not just an administrative order; it is a political message: in Afghanistan under Taliban rule, a woman has no rights. No right to education, no right to work, and now not even the right to speak in order to purchase their necessities from shops.

Image: UNAMA/Fardin Waezi The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has announced that Taliban forces have prevented Afghan female UN staff from entering the organization’s offices in Kabul and the provinces. In a statement on Thursday (11 September), UNAMA said that since 7 September, Taliban security forces have been stationed at the entrances of UN offices in Kabul, Herat, and Mazar-i-Sharif, blocking female employees from entering. According to UNAMA, this restriction has even applied to the travel of female staff providing aid to earthquake victims in eastern Afghanistan and returnees from Iran and Pakistan. The agency warned that the continuation of such obstacles poses a serious risk to the delivery of life-saving assistance to hundreds of thousands of women, men, and children. UNAMA emphasized that this action by the Taliban is a clear violation of previous agreements with the United Nations as well as a breach of international laws regarding the immunity and privileges of UN staff. It is worth noting that in December 2022, the Taliban banned women from working in all foreign NGOs, and in April 2023 the same restriction was extended to female UN employees. As a result, more than 90 percent of female UN staff were sidelined from operational duties and many humanitarian programs were suspended or limited. Human rights activists say these restrictions are part of the Taliban’s policy of “gender apartheid,” aimed at the complete exclusion of women from public, educational, and professional spheres. According to them, such policies not only violate the human dignity of women but also endanger the lives of millions of citizens in need of aid. The international community has repeatedly called on the Taliban to lift these bans. The United Nations has warned that the continuation of this situation could lead to the suspension of parts of humanitarian programs in Afghanistan. In its statement, UNAMA called for the immediate removal of Taliban restrictions on the entry and work of female employees.

Social Media Local sources in Helmand say that kidnappers have killed the son of a businessman after abducting him in this province. According to the sources, the child’s body was found on Tuesday September 9), nine days after being kidnapped, inside a well in Sangin district. The child had been abducted from in front of a school building in Lashkargah city, the capital of Helmand. The kidnappers had demanded 150,000 dollars from his family in exchange for his release, but his father was unable to pay the money. Meanwhile, a video has been circulated on social media showing the child pleading with his family: “Give these people whatever they want, otherwise they will kill me.” It is said that the video was recorded by the kidnappers. Taliban local officials in Helmand have so far not reacted to this incident. This comes as Taliban authorities have consistently denied the existence of kidnappings, armed robberies, and insecurity, claiming that overall security has been ensured in Afghanistan. Since the Taliban’s return to power, kidnappings, particularly the abduction of businessmen’s family members, have increased, and in many cases children have been killed after being kidnapped.

Image: AFP via The Express Tribune The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has announced that 516 women lost their lives in the recent earthquakes in eastern Afghanistan. In a report on Thursday (September 11), the agency added that in addition, 476 men, 509 girls, and 663 boys also died in the incident. According to OCHA, food assistance has so far been distributed to more than 60,000 people and 1,000 families have received emergency shelter. It is worth mentioning that as a result of this earthquake in Kunar and Nangarhar provinces, more than 2,000 people have been killed and more than 3,000 others injured. Despite more than ten days having passed, the need for urgent assistance still continues. Local sources had earlier warned that earthquake-affected women are facing serious health problems. The shortage of female doctors meant that hundreds of injured women were not properly treated and some of them lost their lives. The lack of female relief workers also resulted in the bodies of a number of female victims remaining under the rubble.

Social Media The Taliban in Takhar province have flogged 11 people, including four women, on charges of “illicit relations” and “theft” in the districts of Yangi Qala and Khwaja Bahauddin, in public. The Taliban Supreme Court announced in a statement on Thursday (September 11) that each of these individuals was sentenced to 39 lashes and four months to three years in prison. This comes as the Taliban also flogged four other people, including two women, in the provinces of Balkh and Laghman yesterday. Richard Bennett, the UN Human Rights Council’s Special Rapporteur on Afghanistan, stated in a recent session of the council that the Taliban have flogged 672 people in various provinces since the beginning of this year alone.

Image: AP via independent.co.uk The Taliban have flogged four people, including two women, in the provinces of Balkh and Laghman on charges of “illicit relations” and “running away from home.” The Taliban Supreme Court announced in separate press releases on Wednesday (September 10) that a woman and a man in Balkh province were each sentenced to one year in prison and 39 lashes. In Laghman province, another woman and man were sentenced to seven years in prison and 39 lashes. These punishments were carried out in the presence of Taliban officials, local court judges, and a crowd of people. The Taliban described this action as the “implementation of hudud and sharia rulings.” This comes as Richard Bennett, the UN Human Rights Council’s Special Rapporteur on Afghanistan, recently stated that since the beginning of this year alone, the Taliban have flogged and imprisoned more than 600 people. Four years after the Taliban’s return to power and despite widespread international condemnation, public floggings and desert trials continue. Human rights activists say that public flogging is a clear violation of human dignity and that the international community must not remain silent in the face of such violence.

Image: Ali Khara/REUTERS via daily jang The United Nations has warned that Afghanistan is facing one of the world’s most severe humanitarian crises this year. Stéphane Dujarric, spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General, said on Wednesday (September 10) in a press briefing that according to the World Food Programme report, the highest rate of acute malnutrition in Afghanistan has been recorded this year. He emphasized that 4.7 million women and children in Afghanistan are in urgent need of treatment. According to Dujarric, the sharp reduction of food and nutritional aid from relief agencies is the main factor behind the increase in malnutrition. He added that recent earthquakes in eastern Afghanistan have also multiplied this crisis. Meanwhile, the World Food Programme has announced that due to lack of resources, it has been forced to reduce its aid to only a limited number of those in need. The organization has also warned that nearly ten million people in Afghanistan are facing acute food insecurity.

Photo: World Vision “These carpets are beautiful, but our future is in books” -Ainaz In a corner of a small carpet-weaving workshop in the city of Herat, the sharp sound of tying knots on the loom has replaced the murmurs of classroom lessons. The fragile hands of girls who once eagerly turned the pages of books with hope and passion are now busy weaving carpets whose every knot tells a bitter story of their unfulfilled dreams. After the ban on education for girls above the sixth grade, many girls in Herat, like in other provinces of the country, have been deprived of schooling. Yet, amid the wave of despair, some of them have chosen a different path: seeking refuge in carpet-weaving workshops, hoping it might be a remedy for their hidden emotional wounds. Najia, a 14-year-old girl who until last year was a top student at one of the schools in Herat city, is now one of the weavers in this workshop. She says: “When the school was closed, I became depressed. Every day I was at home, aimless and hopeless. But here, among these threads and colors, I feel that I am still alive; that there is still something I can create.” Many girls like Najia say that carpet weaving has not only become a small source of income for them but has also helped their mental well-being. Somaya, another one of these girls, says: “We fought for our future, we studied, we dreamed. But now with the schools and universities remaining closed, it feels as if everything has stopped. Here, being together, talking, and staying busy has helped us to suffer less from depression.” Local psychologists also confirm that being deprived of education and having limited social space can have severe effects on the mental health of adolescents, especially girls. In this context, carpet weaving plays the role of an informal supportive tool which, although it cannot replace education, helps to prevent more serious harm to some extent. However, these girls have a clear and united demand: The reopening of schools and universities. Ainaz, with a gaze filled with both pain and hope, says: “We have the right to education. These carpets are beautiful, but our future is in books, not only in threads.” These girls are calling on the authorities to pay attention to their needs and fundamental rights. They want their voices to be heard; not only behind the loom, but also in the halls of knowledge, science, and future-building.