Since the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021, Afghanistan’s women have been subjected to an unprecedented wave of repression. What began as a rollback of rights under the group’s previous rule has escalated into a systematic attempt to erase women from public life. Through harsh edicts and gender-based violence, the Taliban has imposed a regime of gender apartheid that affects every aspect of life for Afghan women and girls. The Widespread Erasure of Women’s Rights Under the Taliban, Afghan women have seen their rights vanish almost overnight. Public spaces are off-limits: schools and universities are closed to girls, most…
Author: Khanzada Gul
The Taliban has introduced new laws in Afghanistan aimed at “promoting good and eliminating evil.” Under these rules, women are banned from speaking loudly in public or showing their faces outside their homes. The United Nations has condemned these so-called “virtue sanctions” and raised concerns over their impact on Afghan society. A top UN official described the laws as a “disturbing vision for Afghanistan’s future.” The supreme leader of the Taliban, Hibatullah Akhundzada, has endorsed these rules. The Ministry of Virtue and Prevention emphasized that everyone in the country must follow these new laws. The Taliban’s morality police are now…
Afghanistan’s turmoil is starkly evident three years after the Taliban’s return to power. This week marks the third anniversary of America’s retreat from Afghanistan and the Taliban’s subsequent takeover. The U.S. had initially intervened in Afghanistan as a direct response to the September 11, 2001, terror attacks orchestrated by al-Qaeda. The objective was clear: combat international terrorism and create a new global order to enhance safety and security worldwide. However, as highlighted by Amin Saikal in his new book, “How to Lose a War: The Story of America’s Intervention in Afghanistan,” the world today is arguably more conflict-ridden and polarized…
Taliban Education Ban has deprived 1.4 million Afghan girls of their right to education, according to a recent report by a United Nations agency. Afghanistan stands alone as the only country in the world that restricts female secondary and higher education. The Taliban, who seized power in 2021, enforced the Taliban Education Ban on girls above sixth grade. They claim that female education conflicts with their interpretation of Sharia law. Boys continue their schooling uninterrupted, with no signs from the Taliban of reopening classrooms for girls and women. UNESCO reported that since the Taliban’s takeover, at least 1.4 million girls…
Afghanistan’s Taliban government announced a new visa policy on Monday. They will allow people with visas from the previous Western-backed government to stay in the country for now. However, these individuals cannot return without documents from a Taliban-approved diplomatic mission. The Taliban’s Foreign Ministry made the announcement on the social media platform X. This clarified their earlier statement from July 30, which said they would no longer accept documents from consulates and diplomatic missions staffed by former government members. This move is part of the Taliban’s strategy to control Afghanistan’s representation abroad since they returned to power in 2021. The…
Internet services in Gwadar have been restored following successful talks between the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) and local administration officials. The Gwadar protests, led by the BYC, ended on Thursday night after a significant agreement was reached. Dr. Mahrang Baloch, representing the protesters, and the deputy commissioner of Gwadar district signed the agreement. As part of the deal, the government pledged to reopen all roads for traffic and remove all obstacles. They also promised to release arrested individuals once the protesters dispersed peacefully. The Gwadar protests began when convoys heading to the BYC meeting were stopped. In Mastung, protesters trying…
KHYBER: In a tragic Khyber incident, three people, including two cops, embraced martyrdom in a firing attack near Landi Kotal, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The police spokesperson said that the Khyber incident occurred near Charwazgai post where unknown assailants opened fire on police. The firing resulted in the killing of two cops, Alamzeb and Sher Alam. A passerby also died, and two others sustained injuries. Earlier, a firing exchange between the Railway Police and porters at Mardan Railway Station led to the martyrdom of two police constables and injured one. Four porters were also injured in this exchange of fire. Several others…
Afghan diplomatic missions faced a major setback on Tuesday when the Taliban disavowed many of them. The Taliban declared they would not honor passports, visas, and other documents issued by diplomats from Afghanistan’s former Western-backed administration. This move is part of the Taliban’s ongoing efforts to seize control of diplomatic missions since their return to power in 2021. Despite this, many Taliban leaders are still under sanctions, and no country officially recognizes them as Afghanistan’s legitimate rulers. The seat at the United Nations for Afghanistan remains with the former government led by Ashraf Ghani. On the social media platform X,…
TEHRAN: Iran has decided to seal the Iran-Afghanistan border following several terrorism incidents. Since the Taliban took control in Afghanistan in 2021, terrorist activities in the region, especially in neighboring states, have surged. Iranian media reports indicate that many terrorist organizations, influenced by the Taliban, such as the TTP and the Islamic State of Khorasan, have found safe havens in Afghanistan. This has led to a substantial increase in terrorist activities in Iran and other neighboring countries. Fed up with the growing threat, Iran is implementing a plan to construct a 300-kilometer-long and 4-meter-high wall on the Iran-Afghanistan border. Earlier,…
As Pakistan fights a resurgent wave of terrorism, officials insist they can keep a few thousand Chinese nationals safe. This year, hundreds of local civilians and security personnel have been killed. Pakistan, a major ally of China, has seen billions in energy and infrastructure projects through the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), part of Beijing’s global Belt and Road initiative. However, Islamist militants and Baloch insurgents targeting Chinese nationals and projects have affected CPEC. Since 2017, at least 19 Chinese nationals have been killed in Pakistan. The March suicide attack in Besham, a town in northwestern Pakistan, followed militants storming a…