Since the Taliban took power in 2021, they have restricted women from public areas, stopped girls from going to school, and enforced dress code policies that saw women arrested if they disobeyed.
The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan revealed in its quarterly report, covering October to December 2023, that the Taliban have been cracking down on unmarried women in their latest move and have said women are not allowed to travel certain distances without a male guardian, or mahram, related by blood or marriage.
The UN report, published Monday, revealed there was a case where officials from Afghanistan's Vice and Virtue Ministry, which is in charge of implementing Islamic rules, told a woman she would not be able to keep her job at a healthcare facility unless she got married.
They allegedly told her "it was inappropriate for an unwed woman to work," according to AP.
In another case back in October, three women who worked in healthcare were detained for failing to have a male guardian when going to work and were only released after their families signed a contract promising they would not fail to do so again. The Vice and Virtue Ministry has also been reportedly stopped women without male guardians from accessing health facilities in Pakita province since December.
Officials from the Ministry, described as the Taliban's morality police regularly check health facilities for women breaching their rules and have set up checkpoints throughout public spaces, offices and education institutes.
Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban's chief spokesman, criticized the report and said that the Islamic government must "fully implement all aspects of Shariah for both men and women."
He added: "If UNAMA criticizes these cases or considers explicit Islamic rulings as an act against human rights, then it is an insult to the beliefs of a people."
