Afghans' altered life under the Taliban

Despite all the drama around the Taliban's takeover in Afghanistan, daily life carries on there. But that day-to-day life has certainly changed – particularly for women. By Claudia Dehn & Sonja Angelica Diehn

  • Afghan men are seen in a restaurant in Herat, Afghanistan on 10 September 2021
    It's a man's world: photos and videos emerging from Afghanistan show bustling activity returning to the streets of cities – as at this restaurant in Herat, where customers are being welcomed back. But there is one conspicuous difference from before: at the tables are men and men alone, often wearing the traditional knee-long tunic. Women have become a rarity in the urban landscape
  • Students attend a class divided by a curtain separating males from females at a private university in Kabul on 7 September 2021
    Keep them apart: a curtain divides these students at a private university in Kabul. Gender separation is now the official policy here – and that is likely to spread. "Co-education contradicts the principles of Islam as well as national values, customs and traditions,” said Abdul Baghi Hakkani, the incoming minister for higher education, in Kabul
  • Afghan women walk at a mosque in Herat, Afghanistan, 10 September 2021
    Lost freedoms: like for these women, on their way to a mosque in Herat — after 20 years of allied forces holding the Taliban at bay, freedoms won by women have been quickly erased. Even sports will be off-limits for female players, said Ahmadullah Wasik, deputy head of the Taliban's Cultural Commission
  • Taliban inspect vehicles at the checkpoints as they take strong security measures in the Afghan capital in Kabul, on 9 September 2021
    Omnipresent checkpoints: street scenes are also dominated by Taliban checkpoints. As heavily armed men intimidate the populace, people seek to blend in. Western-style clothing is becoming ever rarer – and the sight of heavily armed soldiers, more common
  • Male day labourers sit at the roadside in Kabul awaiting a job offer
    Waiting for work: male day labourers sit at the roadside in Kabul, awaiting a job offer. Afghanistan, already in a precarious economic situation before the Taliban takeover, is now teetering on economic collapse, with unemployment ballooning. The United Nations has said that "universal poverty" threatens to overtake the country within a year. That would be a poverty rate of around 98%, compared to 72% currently
  • Afghan women protesting for women's and civil rights in fron of the presidential palace in Kabul, Afghanistan, on 3 September 2021
    Not going down without a fight: Afghan women, despite being brutally suppressed, continue to demand their right to education, work and equal rights. But peaceful protests are being met with escalating violence, the UN human rights office warns. The radical Islamists have used batons, whips and live ammunition against protesters, with at least four killings and many more beatings
  • Veiled women hold banners and placards while marching during a pro-Taliban rally outside the Shaheed Rabbani Education University in Kabul on 11 September 2021
    The "pro" faction: these women, on the other hand, say they are happy with the new order. Escorted by official security, they march the streets claiming full satisfaction with the attitudes and behaviour of the Taliban. Such women say those fleeing the country do not represent them and believe that the Islamist rules ensure their safety
  • A female student in a full body shroud speaks at a pro-Taliban rally at the Shaheed Rabbani Education University in Kabul on 11 September 2021
    Aligning course: the pro-Taliban demonstration included invitations for journalists, in contrast to anti-Taliban protests. At the latter, journalists report having been intimidated or even abused. It's a clear sign of the changed times – particularly for women