Live Fire in Herat: Two Women Killed in Rare Taliban Protest
On Monday, Taliban‑controlled police opened fire on a spontaneous gathering of women in the western Afghan city of Herat, according to eyewitnesses and reports from medics. The protest was aimed at the authorities’ recent crackdown on women who were arrested for allegedly wearing the hijab incorrectly.
Medics told the BBC two people died, though the cause of death was not specified, and several others sustained injuries from gunfire, sticks and whips. The police denied any deaths, but admitted they had responded to the crowd, claiming they had “taken action to ensure security and maintain public order.”
Observations from the protesters indicated that security forces fired shots into the air and at the crowd and struck the crowd with sticks. A photographer noted a significant number of people wounded and that the police used firearms and other weapons against the protesters.
In the days leading up to the incident, the Taliban had announced a new rule in May 2022 that made wearing a hijab mandatory for all women. In Herat, the police reportedly began arresting women simply for not wearing the hijab in the way the regime considered correct. Women reported witnessing local authorities searching cars and rickshaws, and the markets having become “deserted.”
Human right experts, including the UN special rapporteur on Afghanistan, have called the protest “rare” and the use of force “excessive.” The UN urged accountability for those responsible.
With protests against the Taliban largely suppressed since the group retook power in August 2021, this incident highlights a growing willingness among Afghan women to challenge the regime’s strict social controls, even at great personal risk.
These events have drawn international scrutiny to the Taliban’s enforcement of the hijab and other moral laws, and renewed concern over the safety of women activists in rural Afghanistan.
For more on the situation of women in Afghanistan, see our related coverage on the Taliban’s mandated face veil and the stories of women who stood up to the regime.
