Taliban takes U-turn, shut down schools for girls in Afghanistan hours after they reopen

Kabul, Mar 24: Taking a drastic 'U-turn' from its previous decision to allow girls to attend high school, the Taliban regime in Afghanistan shut down the secondary schools for girls just hours after they reopened for the first time in nearly seven months.

 

 

Taliban spokesman Inamullah Samangani confirmed the development. The Taliban-led Ministry of Education has also issued a notice regarding this matter. As per the notice, the schools will remain closed due to the girls’ uniforms not being Islamic.

 

"We inform all-girls high schools and those schools that are having female students above class six that they are off until the next order," said the notice. With that notice, female students above the sixth grade will not be able to attend school until a plan is drawn up in accordance with Islamic law and Afghan culture.

 

 

The announcement came right at the start of the academic year, as schools reopened in parts of Kabul and elsewhere in the country.

 

Reacting to that, US special envoy Rina Amiri said Taliban leadership had betrayed Afghan families by denying education to girls. "Today's decision to stop girls over grade 6 from returning to school was not incidental. It was made by Taliban leadership and is a betrayal of Afghan families." Amiri wrote there is "nothing Islamic" & "nothing Afghan" about denying girls education.

 

 

Meanwhile, UN Human Right chief Michelle Bachelet said the denial of education violates the human rights of women & girls. She said all students in Afghanistan must be allowed to go back to school, following the announcement that secondary schools for girls will remain closed.

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