Taliban authorities in the Afghan city of Herat have arrested four young men for wearing outfits inspired by the British TV series Peaky Blinders.
According to Saif-ul-Islam Khyber, spokesperson for the Taliban’s Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, the arrests were made in Herat’s Jibraeel Township. The Taliban accused the youths of “promoting foreign culture.”
Afghan media reported that for the past few days, photos of the youths had been circulating on Afghan social media, showing them wearing long coats and flat caps similar to the outfits worn by the Shelby family characters in Peaky Blinders.
In an interview aired on a YouTube channel, the youths said they liked the fashion because of the show and had received positive reactions from local people. One of them said they later planned to showcase traditional clothing from Afghanistan’s various ethnic communities.
However, the Taliban termed this style of dress as “contrary to Islamic values and Afghan culture.” Spokesman Saif-ul-Islam Khyber also shared a video in which one of the arrested youths expresses regret over his clothing.
Previously, the Taliban have arrested dozens of people for alleged violations of the dress code.
