The US has condemned the Taliban for ordering non-governmental groups in Afghanistan to stop employing women, saying the ban will disrupt vital and life-saving assistance to millions.

The Taliban government issued the order allegedly because some female employees did not wear the Islamic headscarf correctly.

It is the latest blow to female rights and freedoms since the Taliban seized power last year, following bans on high school and university education and restrictions on clothing and travelling alone.

The Taliban takeover sent Afghanistan’s economy into a tailspin and transformed the country, driving millions into poverty and hunger as foreign aid stopped almost overnight.

Sanctions on Taliban rulers, a halt on bank transfers and frozen billions in Afghanistan’s currency reserves have already restricted access to global institutions and the outside money that supported the country’s aid-dependent economy before the withdrawal of US and Nato forces.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he is deeply concerned at the effect the ban will have.

“Women are central to humanitarian operations around the world,” he said on Saturday. “This decision could be devastating for the Afghan people.”

The NGO order came in a letter from Economy Minister Qari Din Mohammed Hanif. It said any organisation found not complying with the order will have their operating licence revoked in Afghanistan.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also expressed concern.

“The United Nations and its partners, including national and international non-governmental organisations, are helping more than 28 million Afghans who depend on humanitarian aid to survive,” he said.

Aid agencies and NGOs are expected to make a statement on Sunday.

The Economy Ministry’s edict came days after the Taliban banned female students from attending universities across the country, triggering a backlash overseas and demonstrations in major Afghan cities.

At around midnight on Saturday in the western city of Herat, where earlier protesters were dispersed with water cannons, people opened their windows and chanted “Allahu Akbar (God is great)” in solidarity with female students.

In the southern city of Kandahar, also on Saturday, hundreds of male students boycotted their final exams at Mirwais Neeka University.

One of them told the Associated Press that Taliban forces tried to break up the crowd as they left the exam hall.

“They tried to disperse us so we chanted slogans, then others joined in with the slogans,” said Akhbari, who only gave his last name.

“We refused to move and the Taliban thought we were protesting. The Taliban started shooting their rifles into the air. I saw two guys being beaten, one of them to the head.”

A spokesman for the Kandahar provincial governor, Ataullah Zaid, denied there was a protest.

Some people were pretending to be students and teachers, he said, but they were stopped by students and security forces.