Afghan Taliban order women TV anchors to cover faces on air

Kabul: Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers have told television broadcasters to ensure that female presenters working in local stations cover their faces when on air, a government official said, the country’s biggest media outlet has said. 

Based on information received by TOLOnews, the order has been issued to all media outlets in Afghanistan.

The directive came on Wednesday from the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice, which replaced the country's Ministry of Women's Affairs after the Taliban regained control of Afghanistan in August 2021. 

The statement called the order “final and non-negotiable,” the channel said. 

Several female anchors and presenters posted their photos on social media showing them with their faces covered with face masks during presenting programs.  

Previously, female presenters had already adjusted to the Taliban's takeover by moving their headscarves to hide their hair. 

Earlier this month, the Taliban ordered all women in public to wear head-to-toe clothing that leaves only their eyes visible. 

The decree said women should leave the home only when necessary and that male relatives would face punishment for women's dress code violations, starting with a summons and escalating to court hearings and jail time.

The Taliban leader also issued a decree barring girls from attending school after the sixth grade, reversing previous promises by Taliban officials that girls of all ages would be allowed an education. 

It is pertinent to mention here that during the Taliban’s 1996-2001 rule, it was obligatory for women to wear the all-encompassing blue burqa or body veil.