The Facts
On Tuesday, the Taliban-run Vice and Virtue Ministry confirmed an order requiring all hair and beauty salons in Afghanistan be shut down within a month.
In a letter dated June 24, the ministry reportedly said it conveyed a verbal order – which mandates businesses to submit a report about their closure – from Afghanistan's supreme leader Haibatullah Akhundzada.
The Spin
Narrative A
What limited hope that existed when the Taliban returned to power has all but disintegrated as the group continues to repress women and their rights in an un-Islamic manner. Islam gives equal rights to both men and women, and if this had been respected by the Taliban, it could have been possible to avoid the growing isolation from the outside world.
Narrative B
Concerns and criticism by the UN and many Western states are baseless and simply propaganda. Like everyone else, the rights of women and girls in Afghanistan are based upon Islamic law and will continue to be so. Current international condemnation doesn't match the facts and the reality of life in the Islamic Emirate.
