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ISLAMABAD —The United Nations said Thursday it was deeply concerned about recent arrests and detentions of women and girls by Afghanistan's Taliban authorities for alleged non-compliance with Islamic dress code.
The U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) warned in a statement that the crackdown is "pushing women into even greater isolation" and called for the immediate release of those detained.
The UNAMA says it has documented "a series of hijab decree enforcement campaigns" in the capital, Kabul, and central Daykundi province, where "large numbers of women and girls have been warned and detained."
The Taliban's Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice and police have been carrying out the crackdown. The UNAMA said that it was investigating claims of "ill-treatment of women" and allegations that payments have been demanded in exchange for release.
"Enforcement measures involving physical violence are especially demeaning and dangerous for Afghan women and girls," said Roza Otunbayeva, the head of the U.N. mission. "Detentions carry an enormous stigma that puts Afghan women at even greater risk. They also destroy public trust."
Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban chief spokesman, rejected the U.N. findings as "propaganda and far from reality."
"The concern of the UNAMA about the mistreatment of women in Afghanistan regarding their hijab is incorrect," Mujahid said in an English language statement on X, formerly known as Twitter.
"Afghan women wear hijab on their own [accord]. Neither they have been forced to do so, nor the ministry of vice and virtue mistreated them," he wrote.
The Taliban seized power in August 2021 and have since imposed their strict interpretation of Islamic law, placing sweeping restrictions on women's access to education and public life.
Women are barred from attending secondary schools and universities and working with government and non-government organizations. They cannot undertake long road trips, or leave the country unless accompanied by a close male relative, nor are they allowed to visit public parks and gyms.
The Islamist group had imposed similar restrictions on women during their previous government in Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001. Only three countries, including neighboring Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, had recognized the Taliban government at the time.
No foreign country has formally recognized the current Taliban administration, called the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, primarily over its harsh treatment of women and other human rights concerns.