Taliban Imposes Further Restrictions on Women in Kandahar, Limiting Movement and Access to Services
In Kandahar, Afghanistan, the Taliban has intensified restrictions on women's daily lives, aiming to confine them to their homes. Women are now prohibited from washing clothes and household items in outdoor water sources like streams and rivers, a long-standing cultural practice. They are also banned from walking outdoors for exercise or leisure. Shopkeepers on Rangrezan Street, a traditional hub for women's fashion, report a 70% decline in business due to these restrictions, as women are forbidden from purchasing goods without a male guardian. Taliban officials from the Directorate for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice regularly patrol the street, arresting and jailing shopkeepers who sell directly to unaccompanied women. Furthermore, women's access to hospitals is severely limited, requiring a male guardian for entry, even in urgent medical situations. An elderly woman recounted being denied entry to Mirwais Regional Hospital with her pregnant daughter-in-law because they lacked a male esc... 
