Photo: Voice of America News / Public Domain Amnesty International has described the Taliban’s “Police Law” as another broad assault on human rights in Afghanistan, saying the law has serious implications for fair trial rights, freedom of expression, privacy, children’s rights and police powers. The organisation said on Wednesday (26 August), in a post on X responding to the law, that one of its “most egregious” provisions is the complete ban on all demonstrations in Afghanistan, a restriction it says is a clear violation of the right to freedom of peaceful assembly. Amnesty International said: “With such a sweeping ban, this decree further deepens the suffocating climate of repression and severe restrictions on fundamental freedoms in Afghanistan.” The organisation also said the restriction has been imposed while the Taliban continue to target protesters and opponents through arbitrary arrest and detention, torture and other ill-treatment, and enforced disappearance. Amnesty International called on the Taliban to immediately repeal all decrees and policies that are inconsistent with Afghanistan’s obligations under international law and to end practices that violate those obligations. The Taliban’s “Police Law” was recently published by the group’s Ministry of Justice. Article 50 of the law prohibits all demonstrations within the territory of Afghanistan. The formal ban on demonstrations comes after women have been among the main groups protesting over the past five years against Taliban restrictions on education, work, freedom of movement and social participation. With the implementation of this law, a ban that had previously been enforced in practice through the suppression of protests has now also been incorporated into the Taliban’s formal legal framework.

AI-generated / Zan TV When night falls, Salima’s dark and poorly equipped home is more than just four walls. It is a place where she must endure the night in tears, worrying about her children going hungry. It has been three months since her husband died. She says he was ill and had little ability to work, but while he was alive, he could at least find some food for their children. Now Salima is left with several children and a table that, she says, is empty on many nights. Salima told Zan News: “Life has become difficult. We have nothing to eat. If I beg, it is shameful and sinful, but if I stay at home, how am I supposed to feed these children?” She says that after her husband’s death, she received no effective support from the Taliban administration or aid organisations. She may be able to endure going to bed hungry herself, but seeing her children hungry is another kind of pain. Bibi Rehana, a resident of Saghar district in Ghor, is also raising six children alone after the death of her husband. She says villagers sometimes give her family a piece of dry bread, some wheat or flour, but the assistance is not consistent. Bibi Rehana says: “Life is very difficult for a widow raising orphans. No organisation or government helps us. I do not know how to save my children from dying.” According to her, her children are becoming thinner and weaker day by day, and she herself sometimes goes through the night without food. She adds: “I am ready to do any work so that my children do not die. I have to find food somehow, but it has become very difficult.” Gul Afroz, another widow in Ghor, weaves carpets to support her family. She works from morning until night, but says that despite the long hours, her monthly income does not even reach 4,000 afghanis. Gul Afroz says: “As long as you have someone supporting the family, a husband, brother or father provides everything. But when you have no one, you realise how difficult life is for a woman who has to provide for the family.” These women say that after their husbands died, they lost not only their spouses but also the main breadwinners of their families. They are now responsible for supporting their children in circumstances where work opportunities and support are limited. They are calling on the Taliban administration and aid organisations not to forget families without breadwinners and to provide widows with employment opportunities and sustained support. In Ghor, behind every carpet loom and every empty table is the story of a mother struggling with tired hands to keep her children alive. These women say they do not want charity. They want their children not to go hungry and the opportunity to live with dignity.

Source: @unwomenafghan / X UN Women in Afghanistan has stressed that female humanitarian workers must be able to continue their work in a safe environment and without restrictions. The organisation wrote in a post on X on Wednesday (2 September) that in Afghanistan, female aid workers are often the only way to reach women and girls who need assistance. According to UN Women, the presence of female staff enables Afghan women and girls to access essential information, support and the services they need. The organisation wrote: “Afghan women aid workers are essential to reaching women and girls and delivering life-saving support.” UN Women stressed that female humanitarian workers must be able to work safely and without restrictions. The statement comes as women in Afghanistan face widespread restrictions on work, education, freedom of movement and social participation, restrictions that have also made it more difficult for women and girls to access humanitarian services.

Source: Kokcha News / X Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban’s spokesperson, says “demonstrations do not exist in Islamic law” and that street protests belong to democratic and republican systems. Speaking at a press conference in Kabul on Wednesday (2 September), Mujahid said in response to a question about the ban on demonstrations that street protests have a place in democratic and republican systems, not in a system the Taliban describes as Islamic. He said: “Demonstrations do not exist in Islamic law, because demonstrations are for societies where different laws are in place, or where there is democracy or republican systems.” The Taliban spokesperson added that if citizens have complaints, they should approach the relevant institutions and, according to him, “wasting people’s time, loss of people’s property and disorder” should be prevented. Mujahid also defended the new “Police Law”, saying it was drafted for “security, stability and the prevention of crimes” in Afghanistan. The Taliban recently published the “Police Law”, under which all demonstrations across Afghanistan are banned. The ban comes as public protests in Herat and Badakhshan have faced suppression by Taliban forces in recent months. The ban on demonstrations is a new restriction on freedom of assembly and peaceful protest in Afghanistan, a right that, particularly for women who have been excluded from many areas of public life and decision-making under Taliban rule, is one of the ways to publicly express opposition and demand their rights.

Photo: ActuaLitté, CC BY-SA 2.0 Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of UNESCO, expressing deep concern over the state of education in Afghanistan, has called on the international community to intensify diplomatic pressure on the Taliban and to relentlessly demand the reopening of schools and universities for women and girls. On Friday, August 15, in a statement, she said that the right to education is non-negotiable, and despite the significant achievements of the past twenty years, an entire generation of Afghan women is being sacrificed. According to her, since returning to power in 2021, the Taliban have issued more than 70 restrictive decrees, many directly targeting women’s freedoms, particularly the right to education. As a result of these policies, 2.2 million girls have been denied the opportunity to continue their studies, and Afghanistan is now the only country in the world where secondary and higher education for girls is banned. Azoulay also warned that the exclusion of women from the media and public sphere has intensified. She emphasized that under the Taliban’s “Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice” law, the use of human images and the broadcasting of women’s voices on radio are prohibited, resulting in more than 81 percent of women working in the media losing their jobs since 2021. Referring to the achievements of the past two decades, she said: “Between 2001 and 2021, the enrollment rate of girls in primary schools rose to over 80 percent, and women’s literacy almost doubled.” But now, these achievements are at risk of being destroyed. The UNESCO Director-General stated that this organization, by training more than 1,000 local facilitators in 2,600 villages, is working to provide literacy opportunities for 57,000 young people, most of whom are girls, through alternative programs. UNESCO has also supported media outlets producing educational content, estimating that these programs have so far reached 17 million people. However, she warned that no alternative program can replace in-person and formal education. Azoulay concluded: “At a time when some are seeking to normalize relations with the Taliban, I call on the global community to mobilize more than ever to fully and unconditionally restore Afghan women’s right to education. Until the day they can return to school, we must not abandon them.” This comes as the Taliban, since regaining power, have banned girls’ education beyond grade six and have so far ignored repeated calls from the international community to reopen schools and universities for them.

AI-generated editorial illustration by Zan TV Although the leaders and representatives of the Taliban government have spoken about justice, equality between men and women, and ensuring women's rights in national and international meetings, nearly 20 strict decrees have been issued by Mullah Hibatullah Akhundzada, the secret leader of this group, over the past year. These decrees have directly targeted the rights and lives of Afghan women. According to political analysts, the restrictions imposed on Afghan women and girls by the Taliban leader in 2024 not only reflect the misogyny of this group but also reveal the true and unforgettable face of the Taliban's previous regime. The Direct Impact of the Taliban's Decrees on Women and Girls Since seizing power in Afghanistan in 2021, the Taliban, through the issuance of numerous decrees and orders, have not only made life bitter for millions of women and girls but have also deprived them of their fundamental, human, and legal rights. According to a report by the Swedish non-governmental organization "ECAPS" on the Taliban's restrictions, while the group claims that their decrees aim to control social issues, women and girls have been significantly impacted by these laws and directives. Out of the 16 decrees issued by the Taliban leader up to December 2, 2024, two are related to matters of "Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice" while the other 14 directly target the rights and lives of women. These include restrictions on education, dress codes, access to work and income, mandatory hijab for female students below grade six, the use of smartphones, and other aspects of their lives. However, in the final days of 2024, Hibatullah Akhundzada, the Taliban leader, issued three additional restrictive decrees targeting women. These include the prohibition of girls attending private educational centers in Herat, a ban on constructing windows in homes to prevent women from being seen from the neighbors' windows while sitting or standing, and the prohibition of women working in non-governmental organizations. This brings the total number of such decrees in 2024 to 19. This comes at a time when, with the issuance of the decree banning girls from studying in health institutes, Hedar Bar, the Women's Rights Director at Human Rights Watch, has stated that the Taliban, through this ban, is creating conditions for the death of mothers and infants in Afghanistan. She has said: "This does not only mean the destruction of the dreams of those girls who wanted to study and help their community, but it also means that this will lead to the death of women who cannot access healthcare." Islamic Hijab or Mandatory Hijab? Although the Taliban issued a decree on May 7, 2022, stating that women and girls must cover their faces in public and emphasized that failure to comply would result in first a recommendation and then punishment, the Taliban leader did not stop at this decree. On July 23, 2024, he issued another decree making hijab mandatory for female students below grade six in schools and educational centers. Some of the girls affected by this decree, complaining about the strict laws of the Taliban, are calling for the reopening of school doors and the removal of these restrictions. Naziah, an 11-year-old girl who is in the fourth grade at one of the schools, says: "It’s been five or six months now that our teachers have told us not to come to class without wearing a prayer shawl, because the government has said we must wear a black shawl so that people don't see us, as it is considered a sin. But I want to be comfortable, and when I come to class, this shawl feels heavy on my head." Asma, another female student who is learning English at an educational center, says: "We are still children, we are at home without a shawl, and my father doesn't say anything. Why do the Taliban say we must wear a big prayer shawl? Should I focus on my school books, or this big shawl? My request is that I be allowed to come to my course without this shawl, and just in the school clothes I already wear." The Ban on Girls' Education in Medical Institutes: A Factor Contributing to the Humanitarian Crisis Following the decree issued by Mullah Hibatullah Akhundzada, the Taliban leader, on December 19, 2022, banning girls from studying at public and private universities, the only remaining pathway for education for the girls who had been deprived of their studies in Afghanistan was medical institutes. Thousands of girls across the country, by changing their fields of study, entered 175 medical institutes to pursue their lost hopes. However, on December 13, 2024, the Taliban leader issued another decree, closing the last door to education for girls. Aisha Faizi, who is in the final semester of midwifery at a medical institute in Kandahar province, says that due to intense anxiety, she has attempted suicide several times. She says: "I have tried several times to end my life, but God didn't allow it. I'm really tired, and every day I wait to see what the Taliban will say next, so I can obey their decree as a girl. I wanted to become a midwife and serve the people. The women in our village needed a midwife and a doctor, but the Taliban won't let us serve our people." Fariba, another girl deprived of education who has migrated to Iran due to this ban, says: "I was ready to fight against the Taliban's decrees. I came here to study. The seat of power is always made of wood, and the Taliban must know that these seats are not eternal. Maybe one day the system will change. At least I am showing that I am an Afghan girl, and even though my education is banned, I can beg for education in a neighboring country, but I will not give up on my efforts and will serve my people." The ban on girls' education in medical institutes has sparked strong reactions, including from Robert Dickson, the British Embassy's chargé d'affaires in Afghanistan, who expressed his deep concern on X, writing: "This is another insult to women's right to continue their education and will further restrict Afghan women and children's access to healthcare." The Final Nail to the Door of Girls' Education According to a report by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), following the decree issued by Mullah Hibatullah Akhundzada, the Taliban leader, banning education for girls above the sixth grade, more than 1.4 million girls across Afghanistan have been deprived of their education since March 22, 2022. However, in the final days of 2024, the leader of the group issued a new decree prohibiting girls from attending educational centers in Herat province. The officials of the Taliban's Department for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice in Herat province, citing the decree of Mullah Hibatullah Akhundzada regarding the ban on education for girls above the sixth grade in educational centers, instructed relevant authorities on December 24, 2024, to prevent girls from attending educational centers in Herat province. Some girls, who have been deprived of attending private educational centers in this province, have described this action by the Taliban as driving the final nail into the door of girls' education. They say that with this ban, the last ray of hope has been extinguished in their hearts, but the fire of being confined to their homes has once again been ignited for them. Hiwa, a 22-year-old girl whose face is filled with sadness, speaks with a choked voice full of emotion to Zan TV: "I studied until the third semester at the Faculty of Psychology at Herat University, but with the ban on girls going to university, I sought refuge in an educational center to escape the mental struggles and confinement at home, to learn English and stay away from this situation. But today, they have closed that door on us as well." Shafiqah Shojahi, another girl who is learning a language at an educational center in Herat, complains about the strict laws of the Taliban. She says, "Although the Taliban had previously forced us to wear black veils, now they have also deprived us of the right to attend private educational centers." She says, "Believe me, it was very hard for me to accept wearing the veil, but in order to raise my capacity and level of awareness, I agreed. Right now, I don't know what the authorities of the Emirate want to do with us. I don't know what our sin is. I don't know which door to go to now." The Demand of Women and Girls for the Immediate End of Taliban Restrictions The women and girls of Afghanistan, who are directly affected by the Taliban's orders, are urging the international community and global organizations to intervene as soon as possible to put an end to this issue. Frishta Hamidi, a housebound judge from Herat province, said in an interview with Zan TV: "Look at what the Taliban is doing. The world must view the issue of Taliban's orders from a different perspective. This regime has placed Afghan women and girls under its magnifying glass, and they see nothing else. Therefore, human rights organizations and international bodies must defend the rights of women." Khadija Fazli, another woman who carried a weapon before the Taliban's rise to power and fought to protect her country against this group, says that now her days and nights are spent in fear and trembling. She urges human rights organizations to save the women of Afghanistan from this situation: "The Taliban has adopted a system of governance that aims solely to control women. They are only trying to dictate what women should or shouldn't do. Perhaps in a few days, the absent leader of the Taliban will say that women and girls should be buried alive. Our request is that human rights organizations defend us and see the condition we are in." As 2024 comes to a close, women's rights and human rights organizations have described this year as the peak of the Taliban's decrees on the rights and lives of women in Afghanistan, stating that the Taliban continue to impose laws and restrictions with even greater enthusiasm. Heather Barr, the director of the women's rights division at Human Rights Watch, referring to the grim lives of women and girls under the Taliban's decrees, stated that the group, by continuing its oppressive orders, has made life even more bitter for the women of this country. She added, "It is now evident that the Taliban, with the sense of power and boldness they have gained, are eagerly continuing their path of imposing restrictions on the rights and lives of women." It is worth mentioning that the Taliban government is approaching its fourth anniversary, yet the strict laws imposed by this group have prevented its recognition by countries around the world.

AI-generated editorial illustration by Zan TV Systematic Polygamy and Sexual Violence under the Taliban Regime "They took her as the second wife; and I no longer had a mother." Maryam, a twelve-year-old girl from the Andar district of Ghazni province, tearfully recounts: "They took my mother. They said her husband was dead, and now she 'belongs' to a Taliban fighter." Later, she learned that her mother, without consent or approval, had been "married" as the second wife to one of the Taliban commanders. There was no witness, no legal contract, and no right of choice for that woman. Tradition or Tool of Domination? Forced Marriage, Polygamy, and Sexual Ownership of Women Since the Taliban's return to power on August 15, 2021, hundreds of Afghan women have fallen victim to forced marriages, imposed polygamy, and sexual violence. The Taliban, especially local commanders and armed individuals, have used their political and military dominance to impose second, third, and fourth marriages. According to the report by the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (before it was dissolved by the Taliban), at least 234 cases of forced marriages or imposed polygamy were recorded between September 2021 and June 2022. Human rights sources believe that these figures represent only the "tip of the iceberg" of the hidden crisis in the shadows of Afghanistan. A women's rights activist from Kabul, who wishes to remain anonymous due to Taliban threats, says, "The Taliban use religion to justify these actions, but the real goal is to seize control over women's bodies and autonomy." "They kept us in prison for sexual exploitation." Systematic Sexual Violence in Taliban Detention Centers Monira, a former civil rights activist, has a harrowing account from Kandahar prison: "I was raped for three consecutive nights. Every night, a different commander came. If I resisted, they threatened to kill me." "They forced me to divorce my husband so that I could become the third wife of a local Taliban commander. Later, I found out that his first and second wives were also forcibly married, just like me." According to findings by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, the Taliban have used sexual violence in numerous cases as a tool for control, torture, and punishment of women. However, access for international organizations to Taliban prisons remains limited and prohibited. Other Stories of Silence and Humiliation Zainab, a fifteen-year-old girl from Faryab, was forced into a marriage with a Taliban judge simply because her family could not pay the ransom money. Nazia, a widow from the Washir district in Helmand, was directly threatened with death and forced to marry a Taliban commander: "They told me: either you become this man's wife, or all of you will be killed for 'apostasy'." Obaidullah, the father of one of the victims from Khogyani, Nangarhar, says: "Either I gave my daughter, or they would kill all of us." What do the United Nations and International Organizations say? Human Rights Watch (HRW) in a report from December 2023 warned: "We have increasing evidence of the systematic violation of Afghan women's sexual and reproductive rights in detention centers and forced marriages in Taliban-controlled areas." The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) in its 2024 annual report wrote: "Taliban-affiliated men have, in numerous cases, forced women into marriage without consent and under threats. Some refer to these marriages as 'war spoils'." "Sexual Apartheid" in the Shadow of Global Power Vacuum Maryam Qureshi, an Afghan human rights lawyer in Germany, emphasizes: "What is happening in Afghanistan is a system of sexual apartheid. The Taliban use marriage, imprisonment, rape, and forced divorces to weaken and control women." She calls for the establishment of a United Nations truth commission to document sexual crimes and investigate the possibility of prosecuting the Taliban for crimes against humanity. Conclusion: Neither Tradition, Nor Religion – But a Tool of War Against Women's Bodies While the international community engages in discussions for interaction or recognition of the Taliban, women in Afghanistan, from Faryab to Kandahar, from Ghazni to Nangarhar, face daily humiliation, forced marriages, and rape. If the silence continues, history will not only judge the Taliban but also the indifference of the global community.

Photo: U.S. Army / Public Domain The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) says that one out of every three children in Afghanistan does not attend school. According to the organization, 60 percent of these children are girls. UNICEF stated that in cooperation with the World Bank in Asia, it supports the creation of educational classes for adolescent girls. The organization emphasized that it helps girls in Afghanistan who have been deprived of their right to attend school to continue their education through "community-based classes." This data is being published at a time when, since the Taliban's return to power in Afghanistan, women and girls have been banned from receiving education. The group has also recently shut down a number of local educational classes in several provinces.

Photo: Voice of America / Public Domain The Women’s Political Participation Network of Afghanistan, in statement, has called the wave of arrests of women and girls in Kabul a “systematic crime” and expressed deep concern over the silence of the international community in the face of this situation. In the statement, published today, Monday, July 21, it is stated that in recent days, Taliban forces have illegally and without any accountability abducted innocent women and girls from the streets of Kabul. Meanwhile, there is no official information available regarding the reason for their arrest, their place of detention, or their health status, leaving their families in a state of distress and uncertainty. The network emphasized that the abduction of women and girls is a clear and flagrant violation of human rights and women’s rights. However, what deepens this tragedy, according to the network, is the “heavy and unjustifiable silence of the international community” regarding these events. This silence, from the perspective of the network, is viewed as “legitimizing violence and being complicit with oppression.” The Women’s Political Participation Network of Afghanistan, strongly condemning these actions, has called for an immediate end to the arrests and the release of the abducted women. It urged the international community, media, human rights organizations, and governments to break their silence against this systematic violation of women’s rights and take “immediate and effective action.” The statement concludes by stressing that the Taliban must be held accountable for these inhumane actions and that the international community cannot remain indifferent to such crimes.

Photo: Defense Visual Information Distribution Service / Public Domain Razia Jan, a prominent advocate for girls’ education in Afghanistan, has passed away at the age of 81. According to the New York Times, on Wednesday (August 6), she, who was born in Afghanistan and held U.S. citizenship, recently passed away in Los Angeles due to heart complications. Razia Jan migrated to the United States in the 1970s. In 2007, she returned to Afghanistan and established a free school for girls in the Deh Sabz district of Kabul. The school began operating in 2008, and by 2016, it graduated its first 12th-grade students. In 2017, Razia Jan founded a two-year educational institute for midwifery, which provided girls in rural areas with the opportunity to pursue higher education. After the Taliban regained power, despite restrictions on girls’ education, her school has remained active and currently teaches more than 800 students from kindergarten to sixth grade. Throughout her work, Razia Jan received multiple international awards, including the title of CNN Hero and an honorary doctorate. It is worth noting that since the Taliban’s return to power in 2021, girls above sixth grade have been banned from formal education, and universities have also been closed to female students.