Civil servants in Afghanistan are given the choice between mosque or punishment

Since taking power in August 2021, Supreme Leader Haibatullah Akhundzada has systematically tightened the rules of Islamic living, including by barring girls and women from higher education and by requiring them to be accompanied by men every time they leave the house.

In the last order from the hand of the supreme leader, it is stated that employees in the government and in public institutions must pray in their congregation at fixed times, as laid down in the Koran.

It is added that employees who are absent without a reasonable reason will first receive a warning. In the case of repeated offences, there is talk of an adapted punishment.

According to Islam, devout Muslims should strive to pray five times a day, either at home or in a mosque. The times follow the course of the sun, but sometimes fall into working hours. It has not been specified how the authorities will ensure that compulsory prayer times are observed at people’s homes.

The supreme leader rules the country via directives from his hideout in the heartland of Kandahar, the spiritual center of the Taliban movement. He very rarely appears in public, and the few times he does, guards ensure that no video or photos are ever taken.