On June 11, 2026, the United Nations issued ‘grave concern’ for Afghan women as at least 30 women in Herat, Afghanistan, were arrested for violating the Taliban’s dress code the previous weekend. The arrests sparked protests in the city of Herat, which the UN reported was experiencing the “excessive use of force” by the Taliban, killing at least two individuals and injuring many others.

Georgette Gagnon, who is the UN Deputy Special Representative leading the mission in Afghanistan, stated, “a woman’s detention in Afghanistan carries enormous stigma, which can put women at risk of further violence and isolation in their families and communities even after they are released,” indicating that initial arrests are not the only concern present. The UN also stated that “while many women have since been released, the arrests have heightened fear and apprehension among women and girls across Afghanistan,” and that “Taliban security forces allegedly opened fire on protesters – men, women and children – ‌administering ⁠beatings to some” during the Herat protests. Despite UN reports, AzizurRahman Muhajir, the Taliban’s head of the Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice in Herat, stated in an Afghan news source that “no woman has been arrested in Herat so far, and women’s hijab is complete. Claims of women being detained over improper hijab are propaganda.”

With this being the Taliban’s second time taking control of Afghanistan, it has long been known that their treatment towards women especially causes great harm and puts innocent citizens in grave danger. Women all across Afghanistan face the risks of the Taliban, but the city of Herat can be seen as a sort of hotspot for women to be more cautious currently. Between the protest force and the detentions for violating the dress code, the women in this region of Afghanistan are not only at risk for arrest, but also for isolation and increased violence towards their communities. The Taliban arresting women for violating their dress code is a crime in itself for violating their freedom of expression and religion, but it also greatly intensifies when the use of force or isolation becomes present. Despite the Taliban’s religious or jihadi factors, their treatment towards women and all those affected by their regime and Sharia law is immoral and simply wrong. No individual should be threatened, live in fear, or be punished for simply expressing their individual freedoms or beliefs, but in a Taliban Afghanistan that is simply not tolerated, and therefore violates international humanitarian law. 

The Taliban retook control of Afghanistan in 2021, following the United States removing troops that were previously stationed there. Since then, the Taliban has ruled the country under their version of Sharia law, which strictly violates human rights, education, movement, and personal freedoms. In relation to the arrests of women, they were detained for violating the Taliban’s strict dress code, which requires women to wear a burka or chador with a face mask, according to the United Nations. Despite the Taliban publicly rejecting the fact that they are detaining women, the Afghan Studies Center has reported that 1,825 women have been arrested and detained since 2021, displaying the harsh treatment and dire need to rid Afghanistan of the Taliban. 

Women being detained and mistreated in Afghanistan is not an unfamiliar topic when the Taliban is in power, but without their removal, women will only continue to suffer, along with individuals like protesters who are shown violence and, at times, death. Their rights, abilities, and opportunities have already been restricted across all genders and ages, and therefore their lives should not be at risk as well, which is what the present and future currently hold for Afghan citizens.