Richard Bennett, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan, has strongly condemned the Taliban’s continued detention of women for allegedly violating the group’s mandatory dress code, calling the arrests illegal and unacceptable.
In a statement posted on X on Monday, June 8, Bennett expressed grave concern over what he described as the third consecutive day of arbitrary arrests and detentions of dozens of women in Herat province.
“I am deeply concerned that for the third consecutive day, dozens of women in Herat are being arbitrarily arrested and detained for violating the Taliban’s dress code,” Bennett wrote. “These detentions must stop immediately, and all detained women must be released without delay.”
The UN expert emphasized that the mass arrests lack any legal basis under both international human rights law and Afghanistan’s domestic legal framework, which the Taliban have effectively suspended. He also warned that such actions amount to gender-based discrimination and may constitute arbitrary detention—a violation of international norms.
According to local sources who spoke to the Hasht-e Subh Daily on Saturday, the Taliban’s “Morality Police” officially operating under the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice deployed heavily across several districts of Herat city. These included the so-called “auction road,” as well as markets, shopping centers, and other public spaces frequently visited by women. Multiple women were reportedly taken into custody and transferred to unknown locations.
The crackdown follows a formal decree issued by the Taliban leadership, which mandates that all women and adolescent girls must adhere to the group’s strict dress code including covering their faces and bodies in public under threat of arrest, imprisonment, or other punitive measures. The decree explicitly authorizes the morality police to detain and transport non-compliant women to detention facilities.
The arrests have been further legitimized by local religious authorities. In recent Friday prayers, imams in Herat reportedly warned congregants that women must not leave their homes without observing the Taliban’s required dress code, framing compliance as both a religious and legal obligation.
As of Monday, it remains unclear exactly how many women are still in custody, what charges if any have been formally brought against them, or whether they have been granted access to legal representation or contact with their families. Human rights groups have called for immediate independent monitoring of the situation.
The United Nations has repeatedly urged the Taliban to reverse their restrictive policies against women and girls, which have intensified since the group’s return to power in August 2021. Bennett’s latest condemnation adds to a growing list of international rebukes, though no tangible sanctions or enforcement measures have yet been announced.
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