An Afghan woman walks out of a cell inside the women’s section of the Pul-e-Charkhi prison in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Sept. 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana, File)
A violent crackdown on a protest in western Afghanistan against the arrests of women for allegedly violating dress code regulations has left at least one person dead, the United Nations’ mission in Afghanistan said Wednesday.
Eyewitnesses said they saw Taliban police open fire during a protest on Tuesday by about 100 to 150 people against the arrests of women over the weekend in the western city of Herat.
The U.N. mission said Wednesday it had “confirmed that at least one person, a boy, was killed by gunfire, while several others suffered injuries including from being beaten with sticks.” It said it was also verifying reports of a second fatality.
Protests are rare in Afghanistan, which has been run by the Taliban since 2021 in the wake of the chaotic withdrawal of U.S.-led forces. The government has since imposed rules governed by a strict interpretation of Islamic law, or Shariah. Dissent is not tolerated, and protests against government decisions are illegal.
