Taliban Suspends Barbers From Shaving, Trimming Men’s Beards In Afghanistan

The Taliban have warned barbers in Helmand province in Afghanistan to desist from shaving or trimming beards.

The Taliban said shaving off beards breaches their interpretation of Islamic law.

In a report by BBC, the Taliban police said anyone caught violating the rule will be severely punished.

The report said, in a notice posted on salons in southern Helmand province, the Taliban officers warned that hairdressers must follow Sharia law for haircuts and beards.

Some barbers in the capital of the country, Kabul have said they also received similar orders.

“No one has a right to complain,” the notice reportedly read.

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The instructions suggest a return to the strict rulings of the group’s past tenure in power, despite promises of a milder form of government.

The Taliban have promised an inclusive government and a more moderate form of Islamic rule than when they last ruled the country from 1996 to 2001.

During their last reign, men were required to grow beards while the women were made to wear an all-encompassing burqa, covering both their hair and face.

Music was banned to prevent the promotion of vulgarity, while citizens could only listen to religious chants.

The Taliban also banned television and cinema, and some electronic products were outlawed as un-Islamic.

The latest development suggests an imposition of former Islamic laws that governed their past tenure.

A barber was quoted as saying the Taliban enforcers keep coming to their shops to monitor them.

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“The fighters keep coming and ordering us to stop trimming beards,” a barber in Kabul reportedly said.

“One of them told me they can send undercover inspectors to catch us.”

The barbers reportedly said the new rules are making it hard for them to make a living.

In August, Taliban fighters quickly captured most of Afghanistan last month and celebrated the departure of the last U.S. forces after 20 years of war.

Since then, they have carried out harsh punishments on opponents. On Saturday, the group’s fighters shot dead four alleged kidnappers and their bodies were hung in the streets of the western city of Herat.