The Taliban on Tuesday, 17 August, indicated that it would not make full burqa compulsory for women as they did during their previous rule in the country.
The Taliban's comment comes amid global concerns of the fate of women in Afghanistan in lieu of its previous 1996-2001 rule, when girls' schools were shut, and women were not allowed to travel or work.
Speaking to Britain's Sky News, Suhail Shaheen, spokesman for Taliban's political office in Doha said,
"The burqa is not the only hijab (headscarf) that (can) be observed, there are different types of hijab not limited to burqa."Suhail Shaheen, spokesman for Taliban's political office in Doha
However, he didn't clarify what other types of hijab would be acceptable under the Taliban rule.
The Taliban spokesperson also ruled out concerns around women's education, that now lies in the hands of insurgents who captured the country's capital Kabul on Sunday, 15 August.
He said that women "can get education from primary to higher education, that means university. We have announced this policy at international conferences, the Moscow conference and here at the Doha conference (on Afghanistan)".
The spokesperson added that thousands of schools that are in areas captured by the Taliban were still operational.
Notably, the Taliban government during its previous rule had imposed strictest interpretations of sharia and Taliban courts gave extreme punishments, which included chopping off the hands of thieves and women accused of adultery being stoned to death.
(With inputs from NDTV)
(This is a developing story. It will be updated with more details.)
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