HRW: Taliban Forcing Herat Women to Wear Burqas, Violating Rights

Human Rights Watch (HRW) has warned in a new report that the Taliban administration has taken another step in violating Afghan women’s fundamental rights and freedoms by forcing women in Herat province to wear the burqa.

The report, released on Wednesday night, November 18, indicates that this restriction has directly reduced women’s access to healthcare services and made their participation in administrative and educational affairs more difficult.

According to HRW’s findings, the mandatory burqa policy now applies not only to female government employees but also to women teaching in primary schools — a development that has intensified restrictions on women in official institutions.

Human Rights Watch described the move as part of the Taliban’s repressive policy to control women and erase them from public life, characterizing it as “a new form of gender apartheid.”

The organization sharply criticized the global inaction in response to this situation and called for the Taliban to be held accountable, urging immediate action to restore the freedoms and rights of Afghan women.