Since returning to power, the Taliban have imposed ever stricter regulations on public life. Women have to veil themselves again. Now there is apparently a requirement especially for female journalists.
In the future, journalists in Afghanistan will have to cover their faces on television. This was reported by the Tolonews broadcaster, citing the militant Islamist Taliban ruling in Afghanistan.
The order is final and not up for discussion, it said. There was initially no official announcement.
From now on, only the eyes of the TV journalists should be visible, said an Afghan media representative from the German Press Agency. Another explained women could cover their noses and mouths with a medical mask. Pictures of moderators with headscarves and masks circulated on social media on Thursday.
Since returning to power, the Taliban have imposed ever stricter regulations on public life. In early May, they mandated women to veil themselves in public. The chadori – a head-to-toe burqa – is said to be the best form of Islamic veiling.
The blue full veil with a grid in front of the field of vision, which is common in Afghanistan, was already mandatory for women under the Taliban rule until the invasion of western troops in 2001. When the Taliban took power again last summer, a Taliban spokesman said no when asked whether women in Afghanistan would be expected to wear a burka in the future.
In February, the Taliban ordered women government employees to wear a hijab. Most women in Afghanistan commonly wear a headscarf as a hijab. Elderly women or women in rural areas also wear a burka when leaving the house.
