Young, urban women in Afghanistan are increasingly ditching the all-enveloping blue burqa with a face mesh that has become a symbol of the Taliban's oppression of women.

Since their return to power in 2021, the Taliban have imposed their ultra-strict ... a face covering as well – sometimes a medical mask, or a Saudi-style cloth niqab veil that exposes only ...

which are guarded by the Taliban authority's security forces. It is common to be asked to readjust the headscarf, or ordered to add a medical mask. "As soon as we enter offices, we are mistreated ...

Afraid of going back to Afghanistan, one of the girls, Yasmine, recalled a traumatic encounter with a Taliban soldier in a bazaar. “I wasn’t wearing a mask and the Taliban pointed a gun at me ...

which are guarded by the Taliban authority's security forces. It is common to be asked to readjust the headscarf, or ordered to add a medical mask. "As soon as we enter offices, we are mistreated ...

Niha, 22, said she was reprimanded for not wearing a burqa in public buildings, which are guarded by the Taliban authority's security forces. It is common to be asked to readjust the headscarf, or ...