Taliban say female Afghan TV presenters must cover face on air

A girl sits in front of a bakery in the crowd with Afghan women waiting to receive bread in Kabul, Afghanistan on January 31, 2022. [Reuters]

Taliban authorities in Afghanistan have asked television broadcasters to ensure that female presenters on local stations cover their faces when on air, an official said on Thursday.

The move comes days after authorities ordered women to cover their faces in public, a return to a policy of the Taliban's past hardline rule and an escalation of restrictions that are causing anger at home and abroad.