Taliban tries to stop women from being seen at home

Leader orders blocking of windows overlooking properties

- MAYA OPPENHEIM

The Taliban have banned windows in residential buildings to stop women from being seen while they are at home in Afghanistan. Hibatullah Akhundzada, the leader of the Taliban, ordered that buildings should not have windows looking into places where a woman could be sitting or standing.

The order applies to both new buildings and existing ones, according to a four-clause decree posted on social media site X (formerly Twitter) late on Saturday.

The decree, posted by government spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid on X, states that new buildings should not have windows where you can see “the courtyard, kitchen, neighbour’s well and other places usually used by women”, AFP reports. “Seeing women working in kitchens, in courtyards or collecting water from wells can lead to obscene acts.”

The decree stipulates that in properties with windows that do not fit the new guidelines, owners will be urged to either construct a wall or block the view “to avoid nuisances caused to neighbours”.

Heather Barr, the interim deputy director of women’s rights at Human Rights Watch, told