From today, the sounds of women's voices are banned in Afghanistan.

Afghanistan's Taliban rulers have issued a ban on women's voices and bare faces in public under new laws, in efforts to combat 'vice' and promote 'virtue'.

The ministry this week published its vice and virtue laws that cover aspects of everyday life like public transportation, music, shaving and celebrations. They're set out in a 114-page, 35-article document.

Most of the laws are directly related to women and their autonomy.

Article 13 relates to women. It says it is mandatory for a woman to veil her body at all times in public and that a face covering is essential to avoid temptation and tempting others.

Clothing should not be thin, tight or short.

Muslim women are obliged to cover themselves in front of non-Muslim males and females to avoid being corrupted.

A woman's voice is deemed intimate and so should not be heard singing, reciting poetry or reading aloud in public.

It is forbidden for women to look at men they are not related to by blood or marriage and vice versa.

Article 19 bans the playing of music, the transportation of solo female travellers, and the mixing of men and women who are not related to each other.

The law also obliges passengers and drivers to perform prayers at designated times.

Watch: one family's story of being held hostage by the Taliban. Post continues below.

Last year, the Taliban also banned beauty salons.

Beauty salons previously sprung up in Kabul and other cities in the months after the Taliban were driven from power in late 2001. 

Many of the salons remained open after the Taliban returned to power two years ago, providing some women with jobs and a space to socialise. The salons were usually female-only and had their windows covered so customers couldn't be seen from the outside.

Just months earlier, authorities had closed most girls' high schools, barred women from university and stopped many female Afghan aid staff from working. Many public places including bathhouses, gyms and parks have also been closed to women.

All of these laws have been approved by supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, a government spokesman confirmed. 

The Taliban had set up a ministry for the "propagation of virtue and the prevention of vice" after seizing power in 2021.

It empowers the ministry to be at the frontline of cracking down on personal conduct, administering punishments such as warnings or arrest if they allege Afghans have broken the laws.

Foreign governments and United Nations officials have condemned growing restrictions on women.

In July, a UN report said the ministry was contributing to a climate of fear and intimidation among Afghans through edicts and the methods used to enforce them.

- With AAP. 

Feature Image: Getty.