Taliban order male humanitarian staff to grow long beards at Herat center

Taliban officials at the Islam Qala migrant reception center in Herat have instructed male staff of humanitarian organizations to grow their beards according to Sharia standards within one month.

The directive also covers mahrams accompanying female workers. Officials from the Department of Refugees and Returnees Affairs issued the order and warned that non-compliant staff could be barred from the center after the deadline.

The measure follows the arrest of 17 male humanitarian workers at the same site by the Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice. Those detentions took place two days earlier and involved staff with shaved or short beards.

Taliban authorities have not commented on the directive or the arrests.