Taliban in Jaghuri district of Ghazni province are enforcing more stricter constraints on the residents, most notably against women, local sources report.
Mawlawi Akhundzada, the deputy of the Taliban vice and virtue department in the district, has threatened residents with punishment if they continue to resist these restrictions. An audio file of Akhundzada was obtained from a source and has been reviewed by Rukhshana Media.
At a gathering in Sangmasha bazaar on Wednesday, Akhundzada communicated the new prohibitions to the district’s residents. “At three o’clock in the afternoon, members of the Taliban group came to Sangamasha bazaar. They closed the shops, warned people for not adhering to the clothing order and wearing clothes like jeans, and said that those who wear, buy, and sell [prohibited clothes] will be punished after this.”
Akhundzada, adopting a threatening tone, also admonished local barbers, owners of public baths, and shopkeepers, asking, “We have been careful with Jaghuri residents until now; But we are fed up. Why don’t the people and women in Jaghuri listen to us?” He declared the sale or wearing of clothes not in line with Islamic Sharia as a crime, and said shop owners should remove pictures of the human image from shop signs immediately. “The big pictures that are on the top of your shops should be removed, or at least beheaded,” he said.
Notably, barbers have been instructed not to shave or trim the beards of their clients, while tailors have been told to serve customers based on gender segregation, with male tailors forbidden from accepting women’s clothes for sewing.
In his message, Akhundzada also expanded the restrictions on women, declaring that women are prohibited from using public baths. He noted that Jaghuri was a pioneer district for women and girls’ education and freedom in Ghazni province, and he instead urged women to strengthen their bonds with God and His Messenger. “We have already taken the path of punishment,” he added.
While he didn’t refer to a specific individual or group, Akhundzada noted that he has heard “taunts” from outside the district about Jaghuri’s non-compliance with Islamic Sharia.
