The United Nations has expressed serious concern over recent arrests of numerous women in Afghanistan. It reports that two individuals died during protests supporting these women.
On Friday, demonstrators in Herat organized against the Taliban’s stringent regulations on women. Herat, one of Afghanistan’s major cities, witnessed a rare show of public dissent, prompting a strong security response from authorities.
Various online platforms and local media reported that these protests involved a march towards a governmental building in Herat. Protesters held signs and chanted slogans like “Women, Work, and Freedom!” Videos from these events have not undergone independent verification.
The Friday protests were a continuation of Tuesday’s demonstrations where two people, including a boy, lost their lives, and at least 20 individuals were injured according to UN reports.
Sayed Masoud Hussaini, the police spokesman in Herat, refuted claims of arrests or injuries, labeling the protesters as “agitators.” His statements contradicted eyewitness accounts and the reports from the United Nations.
During Tuesday’s demonstrations, a significant group comprising men and women assembled in Herat’s public square. The participants, concealing their identities with scarves and masks, chanted for “education, work, and freedom.”
Herat’s neighborhood has a reputation for being more socially progressive compared to other regions in Afghanistan. It houses numerous individuals from the Hazara minority and Afghan refugees expelled from Iran the previous year. The slogans during the protests echoed Iran’s 2022 “Woman, life, freedom” protests.