The country’s top leader has issued an order requiring women to wear burqas in public

The Taliban are tightening their grip on women a little more. The Supreme President of Afghanistan, on Saturday, May 7, ordered that Afghan women now wear the burqa, the full veil, in public places. This is the strictest control on women’s freedom since the Taliban returned to power in August.

“They should wear Dasatri (another name for burqa) because it is traditional and revered.”The order, signed by Hibatullah Akundzada, was announced by the Taliban government on Saturday in front of newspapers in Kabul. “Women who are too young or too old should cover their face when looking at a man who is not a member of their family.”, To avoid provocation, adds this order. If they don’t have important work to do outside, that’s it “They’re good to be home”.

The Taliban also imposed the burqa when they were in power between 1996 and 2001, which was marked by a strong repression of women’s rights in accordance with the most stringent interpretation of Sharia and Islamic law. After seizing power in mid-August, ending the twenty-year occupation of the United States and its allies that ousted them in 2001, the Taliban promised that the system would be more flexible.

But they soon broke their promises, again systematically destroying rights and wiping out 20 years of female freedom. They are currently heavily barred from government jobs and travel alone. In March, the Taliban closed high schools and colleges for girls just hours after reopening.