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Sent to Zan TV Members of the Afghan Women’s Freedom Lantern Movement, by holding a protest gathering in Islamabad, Pakistan, reacted to the self-immolation of Abida, a young girl from Ghor province. In this gathering, the protesters assembled around a symbolic coffin bearing the burned image of Abida and chanted slogans against the Taliban’s misogynistic policies. In a video released from this gathering, the protesters say: “We have come not for farewell, but to honor bravery. Abida did not speak, but her voice rose from the flames.” Also, in a statement released today, Thursday (1 May), by this movement, it is stated that Abida fell victim to a misogynistic and repressive system in which the Taliban disregard not only women’s will and freedom, but also their lives. The Women’s Freedom Lantern Movement considered Abida’s self-immolation a symbol of the systematic oppression Afghan women face daily. This movement emphasized: “Forced marriage is a crime, especially when imposed by an armed and oppressive regime.” The protesters demanded that those responsible for this incident be prosecuted and that justice be served for Abida, stating that this event is a cry from within the fire against the Taliban’s misogynistic policies. In the video released from this gathering, they say: “Abida’s burning is a clear example of the Taliban’s oppression and cruelty. This self-immolation is not an incident but a fiery cry of a girl against Mullah Hibatullah’s misogynistic policies.” They called Abida’s death “a spark of hope and resistance” and emphasized that her voice will live on among the women of Afghanistan. The Women’s Freedom Lantern Movement, expressing sympathy with Abida’s family, called on the international community to pay more attention to the dire situation of women in Afghanistan and to prevent the normalization of the Taliban.

Photo: Kiana Hayeri / Amnesty International Human Rights Watch, in a report published on the occasion of International Workers’ Day, stated that Taliban-imposed restrictions have not only severely reduced women’s job opportunities but also subjected the few who still leave home for work to threats, interrogations, and in some cases, arrests. The report, released on Thursday (May 1), highlights that Taliban’s Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice officers have harassed working women in some cases. According to Human Rights Watch, formal employment opportunities for women have nearly vanished. In addition to being barred from government and private sector jobs, the closure of beauty salons has deprived more than 60,000 women of their income. While women's workforce participation stood at about 19 percent under the previous government, this figure has dropped to roughly 5 percent under Taliban rule. The group’s restrictions have not only undermined women’s rights to work and education but have also contributed to rising rates of violence, forced marriages, and child marriages across Afghanistan.

Photo: UN Photo by Pierre Albouy Richard Bennett, the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Afghanistan, has called for an investigation and accountability in the case of the self-immolation of a young girl named Abida in Ghor province, describing the incident as “shocking.” On Thursday (May 1), Mr. Bennett expressed his condolences to Abida’s family in a message published on social media platform X. He also emphasized the urgent need for increased mental health support in Afghanistan, citing the “systematic gender-based repression” by the Taliban. The incident occurred on Sunday (April 27), when Abida, a young girl in the Taywara district of Ghor, set herself on fire using petrol and wood, and later died from her injuries. Local sources stated that Abida took this action after being threatened by a Taliban member who intended to forcibly marry her to his brother. This tragic event has triggered widespread reactions. A number of women’s rights activists condemned the incident, describing it as a reflection of the critical condition of women in Afghanistan.

Zan TV Following the self-immolation of Abida, a young girl from the Taywara district of Ghor province who set herself on fire in protest against forced marriage, Afghan activists have emphasized the urgent need to end violence and forced marriages through their messages. In these videos, Afghan activists say that they are all Abida’s voice and have firmly expressed their opposition to forced marriage. They added: “This is only one bitter example of the reality faced by the women and girls of this land, who live under systematic pressure and violence stemming from the Taliban regime and patriarchal rule. The outside world is merely watching and doing nothing to change the situation.” The activists have also called on the international community and human rights organizations not to focus only superficially on the situation of Afghan women but to take real action to end the violence and violations of women’s rights in the country. They asked: “How many more lives must be lost? How many more women must burn? How long will this silence continue?”

Zan TV The Women’s Movement Toward Freedom, in a recent statement, has described the self-immolation of Abida, a young girl from Ghor province, as a symbol of the silent cry of Afghan women and has strongly condemned the Taliban regime for its systematic violence against women. The statement, released on Wednesday (April 30), reads: "Abida, a girl among thousands of silent daughters of this land, under the dominance of the patriarchal system and Taliban fascism, in the moment when all walls rose against her, decided to set herself on fire so that her voice would not remain silent." Expressing sorrow over this incident, the movement referred to the Taliban as a "terrorist and misogynistic group" and emphasized that they must be held accountable in international courts for crimes against humanity and systematic femicide. The movement called on families throughout Afghanistan to resist forced marriages and the sale of daughters. "Do not sell your daughters. Do not hand them over in disgraceful transactions to forced marriages. Stand against oppression, not beside it." Directly addressing men and village elders, the statement added: "Abida became fire to become light. If you remain silent, history will know you by the shame of your silence." In conclusion, the movement, while expressing solidarity with the women of Afghanistan, called on the international community not to close its eyes to this situation. "If you close your eyes today, tomorrow history will write your name beside the oppressors. The Abidas of this world need shelter, support, and justice, not just pity." It is worth noting that Abida, a young girl from the Taywara district of Ghor province, set herself on fire in response to the pressure of a forced marriage. The incident has sparked widespread reactions from women’s rights activists and once again highlighted the tragic fate of women in Afghanistan.

Photo: wikipedia The Taliban police command in Badakhshan says that a woman and her young son have been killed in the Argo district of this province. According to the released information, the incident occurred on Sunday night (April 28) in the village of Arghand, Argo district. However, the Taliban police command in Badakhshan has not provided details about the motive behind the killing or the identity of the victims. The command added that four individuals have been arrested in connection with the incident on charges of murder, and investigations are ongoing. This incident occurs as the number of killings in various parts of the country has significantly increased since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan.

Photo: AFP The Taliban Supreme Court has announced that a woman and a man were flogged in public in Nangarhar province on charges of having an extramarital relationship. According to a statement released by the court on Tuesday (April 29), the two individuals were flogged in the Deh Bala district of Nangarhar. The released information indicates that each of them was sentenced to 39 lashes. This comes as the Taliban Supreme Court had also announced the previous day that two people, including a woman, were flogged in public in Sar-e Pol province on charges of having an extramarital relationship. These individuals were sentenced to two years and one year in prison, and 29 and 25 lashes respectively. It is worth noting that despite widespread international condemnation, the Taliban’s summary courts continue. Human rights organizations have repeatedly criticized these actions, but the Taliban remain committed to carrying out such punishments in public and continuing their summary courts.

Sent to Zan TV In Ghor Province, a girl set herself on fire to escape a forced marriage. The incident has once again drawn attention to the fate of Afghan girls under Taliban rule. On April 27, 2025, in the village of "Darzab Nili" in the Taywara district of Ghor province, a young girl named Abida bint Mohammad Alam set herself on fire in response to pressure for a forced marriage. She succumbed to her injuries shortly after due to the severity of the burns. The girl's family claims that a few days before the incident, the Taliban had visited their house and arrested Abida's father and two brothers. Local sources suggest that the reason for the arrest was the family's opposition to her forced marriage to a Taliban member. So far, official Taliban sources have not commented on the incident. In recent years, several reports from human rights organizations and independent media have been published, highlighting the increase in forced marriages and child marriages in various provinces of Afghanistan. The United Nations, Human Rights Watch, and Amnesty International have repeatedly expressed their concerns about the severe restrictions on the rights of women and girls under Taliban rule. In some of these reports, forced marriage has been described as a form of structural violence against women. Abida's self-immolation has drawn attention from both domestic and international media and has sparked widespread reactions on social media. Civil campaigns in the virtual space with hashtags such as #JusticeForAbida and #NoToForcedMarriage have called for accountability from international organizations regarding the situation of Afghan girls. Human rights experts say that self-immolation is often the last resort in response to psychological pressure, helplessness, and structural violence. In many cases, victims have no legal recourse or safe refuge to resist coercion. Abida is now deceased, but her story once again exposes a bitter reality: In Afghanistan, for many girls, there is no choice but to surrender or burn. Zan TV will continue to follow this case.

Image: Jim Huylebroek/The New York Times 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: Paula Bronstein/hrw The darkness of the Taliban’s cruel restrictions has cast a black, heavy shadow over little Mahtab’s life. She is one of 160 million child laborers in the world, running from dawn to dusk in one of Afghanistan’s major cities, straining her voice to sell five-Afghani gum in order to afford the medicine that cost thousand Afghani for her suffering mother. The clock shows 7:10 in the morning, and I find Mahtabi in a corner of Herat city, hidden deep in sorrow and grief. A sorrow that bends the strong shoulders of adults and weakens the sturdy arms of the youth. The pain of not having money for her mother’s treatment, who lies ill at home, on one side, and the lack of a breadwinner, being an orphan, the empty table, and the sorrow of her two little sisters' hungry stomachs on the other, all weigh heavily on this child laborer's small shoulders. Mahtab, a 13-year-old girl lost from morning until evening in the dust and smoke of Herat’s traffic, says she wakes up early in the hope of selling more gum, but she skips breakfast so she can arrive at the Maref Square of Herat city earlier than other working children. "I try to get here earlier than all the other boys and girls. Some people buy gum from me and don’t take their change. Some days, I don’t even earn fifty Afghanis. My mother is sick, I work so I can take her to the doctor." I try to move closer to her so I can hear the voice buried in her choking sorrow more clearly, but in this square, the noise of vehicles, which seem to outnumber the passengers, drowns out Mahtab’s trembling, childlike voice. Wearing a wrinkled white headscarf and a black coat, clothing that carries a bundle of memories for millions of girls in Afghanistan, she waves her hand and calls out, trying to draw the attention of passengers and drivers toward herself. All of Mahtab’s effort is to earn between 50 to 100 Afghanis by selling a pack of gum, so she can give the money to her mother to either buy medicine or spend it on food for the family. "I don’t sell gum here for myself. We have no one to work. My father passed away, and my mother is sick. Sometimes at night when I go home, my mother takes the money I’ve earned to either buy bread or medicine for herself." Her dust-covered face and cracked hands tell the story of Mahtab’s difficult life. She says that in the past, her mother used to support their family of four by working in people’s homes. But now, as the oldest member of the family, she has been forced to carry that heavy burden herself. "My mother used to go to people’s houses and wash their clothes, clean their homes, and sometimes do tailoring. But now she is sick. The doctors have said she needs surgery. Right now, my mother has no money to get treatment." Slowly, the sunlight begins to shine more brightly on the streets of Herat and on Mahtab’s body, and the number of children who share her fate at Maref Square in Herat increases. Other young boys and girls also come to this place to work in their own ways and take home a few Afghanis by evening. These working children sometimes argue and get into fights, and sometimes they are friends and smile at each other. But Mahtab stays mostly focused on selling her gum. She is less concerned about the future and more absorbed in the worries of today. She is thinking about how to make it through this day and return home with something in hand. A home where a sick mother and two little sisters wait for food and bread. "If I don’t work, how will we find bread tonight? Sometimes my little sisters cry and say we don’t have anything to eat. I have to sell a lot of gum, because if my mother doesn’t take her medicine, she can’t sleep at night. She just sits and cries." With each passing moment, as the warm sunlight shines brighter, the air in Herat grows hotter. Yet the exhaustion and hopelessness on Mahtab’s face become even more visible. It is twelve noon, and no sound comes from Mahtab’s throat. She has been shouting for hours through the dust of Herat’s main road to sell just a few more pieces of gum. With her hoarse voice, she tries to make people understand that she needs the money from selling these gums. But her cries, mixed with the roar of cars and traffic noise, do not reach the ears of many passersby. Mahtab, with a voice full of pain and sorrow, says, "Today again I made no money. Only a few people hear my voice. No one listens to me. I just wish that today I could sell one pack of gum by the evening." Mahtab also dreams of going to school, building her future, playing like other children, and enjoying life. But she says that even thinking about these things would keep her from being able to provide dinner for her family. "I also want to play like others, jump rope, go to school so one day I can help my people. But if I start thinking about those things now, then tonight we will all have to go to sleep hungry." Mahtab says her father served as a soldier in the Afghan National Army during the Republic. But in the early days of the fall of the Republic and the rise of the Taliban, he was killed by a landmine in Zawal district of Herat province. "My father was in the army. It was around sunset when our phone rang. My mother answered, then she started crying and said, 'Mahtabak, you have become orphan.'" Mahtab is not the only one who has become the breadwinner of her family due to the absence of a guardian. More than seven thousand children in Herat province are experiencing the same fate as Mahtab, or even worse.