A new U.N. report reveals widespread detentions in Afghanistan over grooming standards and prayer attendance, part of the Taliban’s growing restrictions on daily life.
BY PC Bureau
The Taliban’s morality police in Afghanistan have detained men and barbers over non-compliant hairstyles, as well as others for failing to attend mosque prayers during Ramadan, according to a U.N. report released Thursday. The detentions come six months after the enforcement of new laws regulating personal conduct.
Last August, the Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice introduced sweeping regulations that govern various aspects of daily life, including public transportation, music, grooming, and celebrations. One of the most controversial rules banned women from speaking or appearing unveiled in public.
That same month, a senior U.N. official condemned the laws as a “distressing vision” for Afghanistan’s future, adding to already severe restrictions on women’s rights, including limits on employment, education, and dress. The Taliban have dismissed these international criticisms.
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According to the U.N. mission in Afghanistan, more than half of the detentions made during the first six months of the law’s enforcement involved men whose beards or hairstyles didn’t meet the imposed standards, or barbers who provided unauthorized haircuts.
🇦🇫THE TALBIAN— WHEN YOUR HAIRCUT CAN LAND YOU IN JAIL, OR WORSE
The Taliban’s morality laws promised a more “virtuous” Afghanistan.
Instead, they’ve delivered detentions over beards, hairstyles, and missed prayers.
In just 6 months, more than half of arrests were for men whose… https://t.co/sp9bTkcXqf pic.twitter.com/Urpyys9JjJ
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) April 10, 2025
The U.N. said both men and women were impacted, particularly small business owners like barbers, private educators, tailors, caterers, and restaurateurs. Many have faced severe losses in income and employment.
The laws are also likely to worsen Afghanistan’s already fragile economy. A World Bank study estimates that the Taliban’s restrictions on women’s participation in education and the workforce could cost the country over $1.4 billion annually.
Despite international concerns, Taliban supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada has defended the morality laws as essential for shaping a righteous society. In a message ahead of Eid al-Fitr, he emphasized the importance of creating a community free from “corruption, harmful practices, and misguided beliefs.”
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More than 3,300 inspectors, mostly men, have been deployed to educate the public and enforce the rules, the report said.
The ministry’s spokesperson, Saif ur Rahman Khyber, claimed the ministry had resolved thousands of citizen complaints and stood for Islamic and human rights. He also defended the ministry’s mission to uphold divine decrees, promote virtue, and eradicate vice, dismissing criticism as unfounded and aimed at undermining their work.
