About the only job women can do for the Kabul government is clean female bathrooms, acting mayor says - CNN

When the Taliban were last in power between 1996 and 2001, the militant group banned women and girls from education and work, stopped them from leaving the home unaccompanied, and forced them to cover their entire bodies.

"Initially we allowed all of them to be present at their duties on time, but then the Islamic Emirate decided it was necessary that for some time their work must stop," Nohmani said, using the official name for the Taliban.

That building is now home to the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice under the Taliban, according to a new sign posted outside and seen by a CNN team on the ground on Friday.

The Sunday march was organized by the Movement for Change Party, a women's civil society movement led by Fawzia Koofi, a former Afghan lawmaker, peace negotiator and women rights activist.

The announcement did not mention female students, sowing fears that girls would once again be excluded from secondary education.

But the Taliban denied claims Afghan women would be banned from secondary schools, claiming they needed to set up a "secure transportation system" for female students before allowing them back into classrooms.

Speaking to CNN on Saturday, Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said women will be allowed to study.