Herat Markets Halve Turnover After Taliban Dress Crackdown Keeps Women Home
Updated
Updated · RTÉ News · Jul 12
Herat Markets Halve Turnover After Taliban Dress Crackdown Keeps Women Home
3 articles · Updated · RTÉ News · Jul 12
Summary
Herat shopkeepers and drivers say business has slumped since early June, with one retailer estimating market turnover has been cut by half as women stop going out.
Dozens of women were detained over dress-code violations, and fear of being stopped by morality police has kept many residents at home unless absolutely necessary.
Female customers drive most spending in Herat's bazaars—one shoe seller said 90% of sales come from women—while an autorickshaw driver's daily profit fell to about $4 from $9.
The downturn underscores a wider economic strain in Afghanistan, where the UN has estimated policies excluding women could cost the economy $1 billion a year.
As the Taliban wages war with Pakistan, is its brutal crackdown on women a show of strength or a sign of impending collapse?
With US isolation failing and rivals moving in, is the world inadvertently legitimizing the Taliban's 'gender apartheid' regime?
Herat 2026: Taliban’s Gender Apartheid Crackdown, Mass Arrests, and the Systematic Erasure of Afghan Women
Overview
In June and July 2026, the Taliban sharply escalated enforcement of strict policies against women in Herat, building on years of restrictive decrees and a 2024 morality law that requires full face and body covering in public. This led to a wave of arrests targeting women for alleged dress code violations. The crackdown reflects the Taliban’s systematic dismantling of Afghanistan’s previous judicial system, including the removal of all women judges, and the imposition of sweeping restrictions on women’s rights. These actions have deepened fear in Herat, further isolating women and eroding their presence in public life.