Afghan women in hijabs protested against Taliban in Kabul while holding signs demanding the terrorist organisation not to deprive women from public life.
In a video that went viral on social media, the burqa clad women can be seen protesting while holding signs atop their head. The Taliban asked the protestors to move but the women stood their ground.
Many women have expressed dread that the two-decade Western experiment to expand their rights and remake Afghanistan would not survive the resurgent Taliban.
Watch Video:
The Taliban declared an "amnesty" across Afghanistan and urged women to join their government Tuesday, seeking to convince a wary population that they have changed a day after deadly chaos gripped the main airport as desperate crowds tried to flee their rule.
The promises of amnesty from Enamullah Samangani, a member of the Taliban's cultural commission, were the first comments on how the Taliban might govern on a national level. His remarks remained vague, however, as the Taliban are still negotiating with political leaders of the country's fallen government and no formal handover deal has been announced.
"The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan with full dignity and honesty has announced a complete amnesty for all Afghanistan, especially those who were with the opposition or supported the occupiers for years and recently," he said.
"The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is ready to provide women with environment to work and study, and the presence of women in different (government) structures according to Islamic law and in accordance with our cultural values." That would be a marked departure from the last time the Taliban were in power, when women were largely confined to their homes. Samangani didn't describe exactly what he meant by Islamic law, implying people already knew the rules. He added that "all sides should join" a government.
In another sign of the Taliban's efforts to portray a new image, a female television anchor on the private broadcaster Tolo interviewed a Taliban official on camera Tuesday in a studio - an interaction that once would have been unthinkable.
