Afghan men held a rare rally Tuesday in the western city of Herat over new restrictions against women, with police denying witness accounts that protesters were dispersed with live fire. Dozens of men gathered in response to a crackdown three days earlier by the Taliban government’s morality police, who detained women not wearing the body-cloaking chador or burqa. Read moreAfghan women erased by the Taliban as the international community looks on A 33-year-old protester said the security forces “used sticks, whips and firearms to disperse the crowd. They even fired shots into the air”. Along with other residents, he spoke on condition of anonymity due to safety concerns. The city’s police force denied that any weapons were used, accusing demonstrators of seeking “to disturb public order”. Protests are incredibly unusual in Afghanistan, where the Taliban authorities have ruled according to a strict interpretation of Islamic law since August 2021. The protester said he saw people wounded, but his account could not be independently verified. “People are extremely frightened,” he said. WatchEU Taliban invite ‘the wrong …