Malala Yousafzai, Nobel Peace Prize laureate and education activist, returned to her childhood home in Shangla, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Shangla district, 13 years after surviving an assassination attempt by Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants. Accompanied by her father, husband, and brother, she visited local education projects backed by her Malala Fund during a high-security visit that lasted just three hours. The area was sealed off for several hours to provide security for her visit, which was kept highly secret to avoid any incidents.
https://www.geo.tv/latest/593944-malala-returns-to-pakistan-hometown-13-years-after-being-shotA group of young Afghan women, including 25-year-old Salih, traveled to Peshawar's Institute of Management Sciences to take an exam in person despite being able to do so online. They did this to ensure they didn't miss the opportunity, which they hope will allow them to pursue higher education after the Taliban banned women from attending universities in Afghanistan in 2022.
https://www.voanews.com/a/afghan-women-take-scholarship-tests-offered-by-pakistan/7952691.htmlPakistan's government has expressed gratitude to the Kabul government for agreeing to allow female students from Afghanistan to pursue higher education in Pakistan, provided that they are accompanied by a chaperone. The Taliban had previously banned girls' education past the sixth grade and prohibited women from traveling or flying without a male companion. Despite this, Pakistan offers fully funded scholarships to thousands of Afghan students, including females, in fields such as medicine, engineering, agriculture, management, and computer science. The Higher Education Commission website states that the scholarship program aims to foster stronger ties with Afghanistan through education. Bilateral tensions have escalated over allegations that anti-Pakistan armed groups are using Afghan territory to launch cross-border attacks, but the Taliban deny these claims. Pakistan's envoy to Afghanistan, Sadiq, has held talks with Taliban leaders on ways to stabilize bilateral cooperation and reduce tensions.
https://www.voanews.com/a/taliban-conditionally-agree-to-allow-afghan-girls-to-study-in-pakistan/7950142.htmlThe Taliban's restrictions on women and girls in Afghanistan have accelerated since they regained power in August 2021, with the United Nations labeling these restrictions as "gender apartheid". The group has barred girls from secondary school and women from university, imposed restrictions on women working for non-governmental groups, and prohibited them from visiting public parks, gyms, and baths without a male chaperone. Women have also been ordered to cover their faces in public, with some TV presenters wearing tight headscarves and face masks as a result of a 2022 diktat by Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar's deputy, Mawlawi Hibatullah Akhundzada. The restrictions have been condemned by rights groups and the international community, who are calling for the Taliban to reverse these policies in order to receive official recognition from other countries.
https://www.khaleejtimes.com/world/asia/icc-prosecutor-seeks-arrest-of-taleban-leaders-over-persecution-of-womenUS President Donald Trump's order to halt foreign aid to Afghanistan for 90 days has been met with alarm by the head of the Norwegian Refugee Council, Jan Egeland. He warned that the decision will have "disastrous consequences immediately" for vulnerable civilians in Afghanistan, where relief operations are already stretched thin. The country is home to over 23 million people requiring humanitarian assistance, and aid has shrunk as donors face competing global crises. Egeland noted that non-governmental groups played a critical role in filling the humanitarian void left by the Taliban's takeover in 2021. He expressed concern about the Taliban's restrictions on women in public life, including education and health, and emphasized the importance of female education, saying "you cannot not educate half your population." The aid suspension has also raised concerns that it may lead to a further reduction in funding for humanitarian operations, which are already struggling due to the Taliban's ban on Afghan women working at NGOs.
https://www.firstpost.com/world/disastrous-aid-chief-slams-trumps-90-day-pause-for-humanitarian-assistance-13855332.htmlThe Taliban's policies have severely restricted access to education and healthcare for women and girls in Afghanistan. Despite international organizations such as the Norwegian Refugee Council providing aid through programs like nutrition and immunization, women face significant obstacles in accessing these services due to restrictions imposed by authorities and a shortage of female medical professionals. The Taliban has been urged by the UN and others to continue supporting the country, but they have yet to allow girls to resume classes. Egeland, from the Norwegian Refugee Council, met with Taliban officials to discuss the issue, who claimed that conditions were not right for girls to return to school, despite previous promises.
https://www.voanews.com/a/cutting-afghanistan-funds-biggest-threat-to-helping-women-aid-chief-warns/7942601.htmlSher Mohammad Abbas Stanekzai, a former Taliban negotiator, has publicly criticized the group's restrictions on girls' education, stating that they are not in line with Islamic Sharia law. He called for the doors of education to be opened to women, citing the example of Prophet Muhammad who allowed both men and women access to knowledge. The comments mark one of the strongest public criticisms by a Taliban official of their policies, which have been widely criticized internationally. Despite previous promises to open high schools for girls in 2022, the Taliban made a U-turn and have since said they are working on a plan to re-open the schools but have not given a timeline. The policies have blocked any path towards formal recognition by Western countries.
https://www.gulftoday.ae/news/2025/01/21/taliban-call-for-girls-high-schools-to-openSher Mohammad Abbas Stanekzai, the Taliban's acting deputy foreign minister, has expressed willingness to uphold the commitment made by the group during negotiations at their Doha office in 2021. He emphasized that girls have an equal right to education under Islamic law and hopes that sense will prevail in the Afghan government to allow girls to continue their studies and contribute to the country and beyond.
https://www.gulftoday.ae/opinion/2025/01/21/encouraging-statementA senior Taliban official, Stanekzai, has publicly criticized the group's decision to close schools for millions of Afghan girls, stating that they are committing an injustice against twenty million people, referring to the female population of Afghanistan. This criticism comes despite the Taliban's claims that they respect women's rights in accordance with their interpretation of Islamic law and Afghan culture. The closures have been widely criticized by international leaders, including Western diplomats who say it is a major obstacle to formal recognition of the Taliban.
https://www.geo.tv/latest/586322-taliban-deputy-foreign-minister-calls-for-girls-high-schools-to-open