In a surprising move, Taliban officials in Afghanistan have arrested four young men in Herat for donning outfits modeled after the British TV series Peaky Blinders.
According to Saif-ul-Islam Khyber, spokesperson for the Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, the arrests were made in Jebrael Township on charges of “promoting foreign culture.”
Reports from Afghan media indicate that photos of the young men, dressed in long coats and flat caps resembling the Shelby family characters from the hit series, had been circulating on social media for several days.
In an interview broadcast on a YouTube channel earlier, the youths said they adopted the style because of their liking for the show and claimed they received positive reactions from locals. One of them stated that they also planned to showcase traditional clothing of Afghanistan’s various ethnic groups in the future.
However, the Taliban labeled the fashion choice as contrary to “Islamic values and Afghan culture.” The spokesperson also shared a video in which one of the detained youths expressed regret over his attire.
This is not the first instance of such action, as the Taliban have previously arrested numerous individuals for alleged dress code violations.
