Taliban ban Afghan women from flying without male relative

The Taliban has informed Afghan airlines that women will not be allowed to board domestic or international flights unless accompanied by a male chaperone, Reuters has reported.

Sources told Reuters that the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice sent a letter to airlines on Saturday informing them of the new restrictions.

They also stated that unaccompanied women who had already purchased tickets would be permitted to travel on Sunday and Monday. According to them, some women with tickets were turned away at Kabul’s airport on Saturday.

Previously, a Taliban administration spokesman stated that women travelling abroad to study should be accompanied by a male relative.

Read more- ‘Taliban didn’t keep their promise’: Malala reacts to closing of girls’ high schools in Afghanistan

Earlier, the Taliban administration ruled that no female child above the sixth grade will be allowed to attend school. The announcement came only a few hours after they reopened for the first time in nearly seven months.