In yet another assault on women’s rights, the Taliban shut down “Black Café,” a rare safe haven for women in Herat, just three days after it reopened. A local source reports that the Taliban’s Ministry of Virtue and Vice closed the café without any official explanation, snuffing out a vital space for women’s gatherings and leisure.
It remains unclear whether the closure is permanent or if there’s hope for reopening, but the silence from the café’s management and the Taliban’s disregard for women’s rights suggest a grim outlook. Months earlier, the Taliban forced the closure of six other women’s cafés in Herat through repeated threats, signaling zero tolerance for women’s social presence.
Over nearly four years of Taliban rule, women have faced relentless restrictions. From shuttering educational and cultural centers to banning recreation and even simple gatherings, the Taliban has systematically erased women from public life. The closure of Black Café is not just the loss of a venue—it’s an attack on the hope and dignity of Herat’s women. This act lays bare the Taliban’s true face: a regime so insecure it sees even a cup of coffee in a women’s space as a threat.
