Taliban morality police have launched extensive inspections of markets selling women’s products in Kandahar city, according to local sources who spoke to NIMRUZ TV.
Sources said the operations began two days ago and have continued across several commercial areas, with officers from the Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice maintaining a visible presence in markets and shopping centers throughout the city.
According to local residents and business owners, inspections have been carried out in multiple markets located in Kandahar’s second, sixth, seventh and ninth districts.
Sources who requested anonymity said Taliban officers warned women against appearing in public and urged them to remain at home. Several witnesses also alleged that some officials used insulting language when interacting with women during the inspections.
The owner of a women’s goods store in Kandahar’s second district told NIMRUZ TV that morality police officers have been conducting frequent visits to businesses and, in some cases, verbally reprimanding women even when they were wearing what is generally considered Islamic dress.
Local sources further reported that several shopkeepers were detained during the operations.
According to these accounts, some business owners were taken into custody because women had entered their shops without a male guardian, while others were reportedly detained over what Taliban authorities described as violations of appearance-related regulations, including shaving their beards.
The exact number of detainees remains unclear, and no independent figures have been released regarding the arrests.
Sources emphasized, however, that no cases of women being detained during the latest inspections had been confirmed as of the time this report was prepared.
The reported operations come amid continuing restrictions imposed by the Taliban on women’s participation in public life since their return to power in 2021. Human rights organizations have repeatedly expressed concern over measures affecting women’s freedom of movement, employment, education and access to public spaces.
The latest inspections suggest that enforcement efforts remain particularly strict in Kandahar, the spiritual and political center of the Taliban leadership. While supporters of the policy argue that such measures are intended to enforce the group’s interpretation of Islamic principles, critics contend that the expanding restrictions further limit women’s visibility and participation in public life.
Taliban authorities in Kandahar had not issued an official statement on the reported inspections or alleged detentions at the time of publication.
