Afghan women
On May 27, 2025, a young woman was killed and her body set on fire by unidentified gunmen in the Tarshid area of Warsaj District in Takhar Province. The victim remains unidentified, and the killing underscores the alarming rise in gender-based violence in Afghanistan, where perpetrators often act with impunity.
On April 27, 2025, a young woman from Ghor Province identified as Abida died by self-immolation after being pressured into a forced marriage with a Taliban fighter. Taliban fighters stormed the family's home, detained her father and brother, and attempted to take Abida by force, the relatives said, resulting in the self-immolation. A women's rights movement, the Freedom-Seeking Women's Movement in Afghanistan, condemned Abida's death and described the incident as a "clear symbol of Taliban injustice and misogyny." The group denounced what it called "systematic violence by the Taliban."
On March 27, 2025, a young girl, identified as Isra, was rescued from a Taliban kidnapping attempt in Faiz Abad District in Badakhshan Province. The kidnapper, a Taliban member, confessed to being part of a 12-member network.
These recent incidents highlight the escalating threats to women's safety and autonomy under Taliban rule in Afghanistan.
A report dated May 24, 2025, revealed that numerous female personnel working with United Nations (UN) agencies in Afghanistan - primarily those affiliated with the political and reconstruction divisions of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) and UN Office for Coordinating Relief in Afghanistan (UNOCA) - have been compelled to operate remotely, following targeted threats and restrictions imposed by Taliban-linked individuals. These coercive measures have reportedly included direct surveillance, intimidation of family members, and the issuance of written warnings instructing women to refrain from reporting to their workplaces.
Just a day earlier, on May 23, 2025, the Taliban-controlled Directorate of Kindergartens under the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, dismissed over 120 female educators and administrative staff from various kindergartens across Kabul. The dismissals exclusively targeted women, the majority of whom were employed at facilities connected to public schools and hospitals. Reports suggest that approximately 117 of these employees had been working without pay for over three months. This action is widely interpreted as part of a larger systematic effort to eliminate women from the professional sphere.
On May 13, 2025, the Afghan Women's Lantern Movement, led by activist Hajar Azada, issued a public statement condemning the Taliban's closure of community-based educational programs for girls in Logar and Paktika Provinces. These initiatives had been supported by the UN and affiliated partners, including United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) and the Education Cannot Wait fund. Azada described the closures as a "blatant violation of human rights" and a "silent crime against Afghanistan's future," asserting that the Taliban's repression is driven by a fear of female intellectual empowerment and societal awareness.
A UN Women report published on April 27, 2025, reveals that over 70 per cent of Afghan women struggle to access humanitarian aid due to Taliban-imposed restrictions. These include the compulsory hijab, the requirement of a male guardian (mahram) for travel, and bans on women working with NGOs and UN agencies, significantly limiting women's participation in public life and access to essential services like healthcare, education, and protection. The ban on girls' education has deepened poverty, with only 43 per cent of school-aged girls enrolled and near-total exclusion of those aged 13 to 17. The shortage of female healthcare workers has worsened maternal health, and the exclusion of women from decision-making processes has increased the risks of gender-based violence and early marriage, underscoring the broader humanitarian crisis facing Afghan women and girls under Taliban rule. Again, it has been reported on March 10, 2025, that the Taliban banned women from praying in mosques in Kandahar and Herat Provinces. Since the start of Ramadan, the Taliban blocked their access to mosques. Reports indicated that the Taliban stand at mosque entrances, preventing women from attending Tarawih prayers (performed during the month of Ramadan).
Significantly, UNAMA on April 10, 2025, released a report assessing the impact and enforcement of the “Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice” law by Afghanistan’s de facto authorities over a six-month period since August 2024. The report highlights systematic implementation of the law through provincial committees, with 3,300 male inspectors, leading to broad restrictions on personal freedoms, especially for women and girls. These include limitations on access to public spaces, healthcare, education, employment, and media freedom. The report observed that overall restrictions on access to public spaces surged from 38 per cent to 76 per cent, while restrictions on education for girls above grade six increased from 79 per cent to 98 per cent. Enforcement of wearing a “proper hijab” rose from 13 per cent to 70 per cent.
Earlier, on April 3, the United Nations World Food Program disclosed that an estimated, 1.2 million pregnant and breastfeeding women in Afghanistan were suffering from malnutrition and required immediate support.
On March 9, 2025, the UN-backed Education Cannot Wait fund, noted that 300,000 Afghan girls are barred from education annually due to Taliban restrictions. It also added that the number of girls deprived of schooling has already reached 1.5 million and will soon rise to millions if the ban continues.
In this connection, former President of Afghanistan Hamid Karzai stated on May 30, 2025, that the Taliban's continued ban on girls' education and their restrictions on women's rights is a serious barrier to both international recognition and the well-being of Afghan society, and urged the Taliban to reopen schools and universities for women and girls. Karzai observed,
We want our girls to go to school. We want schools and universities in Afghanistan. We want our girls to participate fully. The issue of women's rights and girls' education is extremely important. It is a very serious obstacle both to international recognition and to the well-being of the Afghan people.
As in other sectors, the Taliban have also removed female journalists and media professionals from their workplaces. On February 4, 2025, Taliban's Ministry of Information and Culture announced the suspension of broadcasts of Radio Begum, a station known for its programming on women's issues, citing alleged violations of media regulations in Kabul. According to Taliban officials, the station was shut down for "violating broadcasting rules" and airing content from foreign-based television networks.
In August 2024, the Taliban introduced a new morality law mandating that women must be accompanied by a male guardian when traveling or using public transportation. This law also prohibits women from singing in public or allowing their voices to be heard outside their homes.
Since the Taliban's return to power in 2021, public floggings have been employed to punish women for so-called "moral crimes." At least 200 women have reportedly faced such punishments, including lashes for appearing in public without a male guardian or interacting with unrelated men. Victims describe severe physical abuse, lack of legal representation, and social ostracism following these punishments.
Under the Taliban rule, Afghan women and girls have faced escalating institutionalized oppression. Data provided by United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) states that, as of 2024, approximately 1.4 million girls remain barred from secondary education, while over 100,000 women have been excluded from universities since the December 2022 ban. Similarly, UNICEF reports that the economic cost of denying girls an education amounts to at least $500 million annually, or 2.5% of Afghanistan's Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Primary school enrolment fell from 6.8 million in 2019 to 5.7 million in 2022, as restrictions prohibited female teachers from teaching boys.
In the employment sector, female labor force participation dropped from 17.95% in 2021 to just 6.85% in 2023. Unemployment for women soared to 27.29% in 2023.
A report published in August 2024, states that gender-based violence has intensified, with over 300 femicide cases documented since the Taliban takeover - and between January 2022 and June 2024, at least 840 cases of gender-based violence were recorded, over half allegedly perpetrated by Taliban members. Another 73 cases involved non-sexual violence and instances of torture, while 113 related to reported arrests of women, many of whom were detained for violating the regime's strict policies targeting women and girls - such as the prohibition on traveling long distances without a male guardian.
The international community, including the UN, has consistently voiced concern over the escalating violations of women's rights under Taliban rule. On March 13, 2025, Germany, the Netherlands, Canada, and Australia formally requested negotiations with the Taliban concerning human and women's rights in Afghanistan during a UN session. Katja Lasseur, Head of Human Rights at the Netherlands' UN mission, stated that this initiative represents a preliminary move towards possible legal proceedings before the International Court of Justice (ICJ). Should diplomatic negotiations prove unsuccessful, the countries may pursue mediation, and ultimately, refer the matter to the ICJ for adjudication.
Earlier, on March 3, 2025, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCR), Volker Türk, expressed grave concern over the condition of Afghan women and girls, describing them as "virtual prisoners within their homes." He emphasized that they were being systematically denied fundamental rights such as freedom of movement, education, and employment. Türk warned of the profound long-term consequences for a nation "self-harming on a national scale."
In a related statement on February 21, 2025, Anna Kelly, Deputy White House Press Secretary, condemned the Taliban's draconian policies targeting women, characterizing them as "medieval laws." She further criticized the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, arguing that it facilitated the Taliban's resurgence and their imposition of oppressive interpretations of Sharia law.
Likewise, on February 18, 2025, Roza Otunbayeva, Head of UNAMA, addressed the Taliban's restrictions on women's education, employment, and access to healthcare during a joint session with officials from the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Kabul. Otunbayeva underscored the long-term and detrimental effects of these policies on Afghan women and girls, and stressed the urgency of coordinated international action. She described the discussions as "important and constructive," reiterating that women's rights must remain central to any dialogue and intervention strategies.
The evolving situation of women in Afghanistan under Taliban rule presents a bleak portrait of systematic gender-based oppression that not only violates international human rights norms but also constitutes an ongoing humanitarian and societal crisis. The testimonies and documented incidents since the Taliban's return to power in August 2021 - and more recently throughout 2025 - demonstrate a pattern of institutionalized discrimination, violence, and erasure of women from public life. The enforcement of draconian decrees, including the prohibition of girls' education beyond sixth grade, bans on female employment, and strict public appearance regulations, signals an orchestrated effort to eliminate women's agency and autonomy in Afghan society.
Continuous accounts of targeted killings since the Taliban takeover are emblematic of the growing impunity with which violence against women is perpetrated. Such acts reflect both a legal vacuum and a societal climate in which women's lives are devalued and expendable under the guise of patriarchal control and ideological enforcement. The Taliban's coercive tactics - ranging from abductions to public floggings - are not isolated instances but part of a broader systemic repression aimed at subjugating Afghan women physically, psychologically, and socioeconomically.
The Taliban's governance constitutes de facto gender apartheid that systematically dehumanizes women and erodes their fundamental rights. This situation demands urgent and sustained attention from the international community. Diplomatic engagement, humanitarian support, and accountability mechanisms must be mobilized to prevent further deterioration and to support Afghan women's resilience, dignity, and right to live free from fear and discrimination.
