Gyms and public baths will also be banned for Afghan women, Taliban officials said on Sunday (13), after they were announced recently that they were excluded from the capital’s parks and gardens.

Mohammad Akif Sadeq Mohajir, spokesman for the Ministry for the Prevention of Immorality and Promotion of Virtue, told AFP today, “The gyms are closed to women because their coaches are male and some (rooms) are mixed.”

He added that “bathrooms”, which are traditionally separated baths for men and women, will be banned for women.

“Currently all homes have bathrooms and therefore it does not pose any problem for women,” the spokesperson said.

The 23-year-old university student Sana’s explanation is different: “The main reason for the closure of parks, gyms and baths lies in the Taliban’s anti-women ideology.”

“Afghanistan has become an exclusion tower for women today. They want to send women into a black hole. Today, with these facilities closed to them, they will be imprisoned within the four walls of their homes.” interview with AFP

Girls’ high schools are closed and girls have to wear headscarves. Women, many of whom are excluded from government jobs, are also not allowed to travel out of town alone.