Taliban imposes ban on girls above 10 attending school

BBC Persian reported that the Taliban has sanctioned a ban on girls above the age of 10 attending school in certain provinces of Afghanistan.

According to BBC sources, officials from the Taliban-controlled Ministry of Education in Ghazni province have communicated to school administrators that girls over the age of 10 are prohibited from enrolling in primary schools.

In specific regions, the entity now known as the Ministry for Preaching and Guidance, previously referred to as the Women’s Affairs Ministry, has instructed girls’ schools to send home female students who are studying beyond the third grade.

A student from eastern Afghanistan, currently in the sixth grade, shared that they were informed that girls over 10 years old and of a certain height are not permitted to enter schools.

This move follows a previous announcement by Taliban officials in December of the prior year, where they declared a ban on women attending educational institutions.

This decision was met with extensive criticism from foreign governments and the United Nations. Minister for Higher Education Neda Mohammad Nadeem conveyed in a letter to all government and private universities that they were to adhere to the order of suspending education for females until further notice.

The Taliban justified this restriction by asserting that female students were not complying with a strict dress code and a requirement to have a male relative accompany them to and from university campuses. Many educational institutions had already implemented gender-segregated entrances, classrooms, and policies, allowing only older male or female professors to teach female students.

This prohibition on education is part of a series of constraints that have been imposed on women since the Taliban regained control in August 2021. Women have been restricted from activities such as visiting parks, gyms, fairs, and salons, and are required to be covered when in public. Additionally, numerous women have been dismissed from their positions in government employment.