Particle.news
Download on the App Store
3 ARTICLES
·
yesterday

Cosmetic Surgery Clinics Quietly Flourish in Taliban-Run Kabul

Authorities tolerate procedures classified as medical care under rules that require strict gender separation.

Veiled women leave a clinic after laser treatment in Kabul. While beauty parlours have been ordered shut by the Taliban authorities, surgical clinics have mushroomed
Billboards advertising clinic services are dotted around the Afghan capital
Hair transplants are particularly popular with men in a society where baldness and the lack of a beard can be considered a sign of weakness
Image

Overview

  • About 20 private clinics now operate in the capital, offering Botox, lip fillers, facelifts and hair transplants, with one operator preparing a second EuroAsia branch.
  • Beauty salons were banned nationwide in 2023, yet clinic staff say their work proceeds without shutdowns because it is treated as medicine, and some in the sector say even Taliban members seek treatments.
  • Prices undercut Western markets, with Botox typically US$43–US$87 and hair implants US$260–US$509, drawing both local patients and diaspora visitors such as an Afghan restaurateur based in London.
  • Demand is fueled by social media trends, and clinicians report some clients borrowing to pay, while men increasingly seek hair transplants after beard-length edicts made fuller facial hair fashionable.
  • Training links and supplies come from abroad, with visiting doctors—especially from Turkey—coaching Afghan staff and clinics importing equipment from Asia or Europe as morality police monitor gender segregation.