New Report Details Violence Against Women Under Taliban Rule

Under the directive, all members of a surgical team must be either entirely male or entirely female, and mixed-gender teams are prohibited. The order states that a patient’s gender will not be considered when assigning surgical staff.

In the document, Ehsanullah Abolfaizan, the Taliban-appointed head of Kabul Medical University, wrote that “the patient’s gender will not be the criterion; rather, during surgery, all personnel must be of the same sex”.

The letter, issued on Tuesday, 10 February, applies to all teaching hospitals. Medical sources in Kabul confirmed the directive to Afghanistan International.

The new order has raised concerns about the ability of Afghanistan’s healthcare system to provide adequate and standard medical services under the single-gender requirement for surgical teams.

Health sector observers say the country lacks sufficient numbers of female medical specialists, which could make implementing the directive difficult.

One specialist doctor said a surgical team typically includes multiple essential personnel, including surgeons, nurses, anaesthesiologists, cleaners, interns and medical trainees.

Another doctor told Afghanistan International that, apart from obstetrics and gynaecology, the number of female specialists in Afghanistan is extremely limited. He said there are only “two or three female neurosurgeons” in the country and “no more than five or six female ear, nose and throat specialists”. He also reported shortages of female specialists in orthopaedics and plastic surgery.

In December 2024, Mullah Hibatullah Akhundzada, the Taliban’s leader, ordered the closure of higher and semi-higher medical education institutions to girls, raising serious concerns in a country already facing a shortage of female healthcare workers.

The Taliban have also kept schools for girls above grade six and universities closed since returning to power in 2021.

The meeting will focus on regional coordination to address Afghanistan’s humanitarian crisis and strengthen economic cooperation with the country.

Beibut Atamkulov, Kazakhstan’s ambassador to Uzbekistan, announced the meeting during talks with Ismatulla Irgashev, the Uzbek president’s special representative for Afghanistan.

According to a statement from the Kazakh Embassy, the two sides discussed prospects for cooperation with Afghanistan in trade, economic and humanitarian sectors, as well as the implementation of investment projects.

Atamkulov expressed appreciation for Uzbekistan’s efforts to support peace and long-term stability in Afghanistan and for its continued humanitarian assistance to the Afghan people. He also stressed the importance of maintaining humanitarian support and gradually integrating Afghanistan into regional trade and economic networks.

Irgashev, for his part, outlined Uzbekistan’s measures to provide humanitarian aid and economic support to Afghanistan. Regional security and stability were also discussed, with both sides expressing readiness to further expand Kazakhstan-Uzbekistan cooperation on Afghanistan-related issues.

Since the Taliban’s return to power, Central Asian countries particularly Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan have adopted a pragmatic, risk-management approach toward Afghanistan. Although neither country has formally recognised the Taliban administration, their official and informal engagement with Kabul has increased significantly.

The contact group, made up of representatives from regional countries, was created to provide a mechanism for implementing decisions related to Afghanistan and strengthening cooperation to address the country’s humanitarian, political and economic challenges.

The first meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation’s contact group of foreign ministers on Afghanistan was held in New York in late September 2025.

Solangi reposted a report on X alleging that Taliban members in Uruzgan had dug up the body of a former soldier, beheaded it and desecrated the grave.

“This [is] why I call them brainless beasts,” he wrote.

The Taliban police command in Uruzgan confirmed that on Saturday night the body of Sediqullah, a former member of the previous Afghan government’s security forces, was exhumed from the Martyrs’ Cemetery in Tarinkot.

The former serviceman’s family told Afghanistan International that Taliban forces destroyed his grave in the centre of Uruzgan province on Saturday night and removed his body from the burial site.

Images and videos obtained by Afghanistan International show the grave completely destroyed, with the burial chamber exposed. The footage indicates that the body was removed from the grave.

Solangi previously used similar language to describe the Taliban in response to an Afghanistan International report documenting the killing of 6,660 Afghans over nearly four years under Taliban rule.

In a statement issued on Sunday, the movement said five of its 17 leadership council members opposed provisions of the organisation’s charter and decided to separate from the group.

The statement said several leadership council members and some ordinary members disagreed with the movement’s strategy of pursuing a political solution and building national consensus.

It added that the leadership council had held hours of discussions in recent weeks in an effort to uphold the charter’s objectives and preserve unity within the organisation.

According to the statement, a majority of the founding council and members voted to continue pursuing the two strategies.

Last week, a statement circulated in the movement’s name expressing support for armed struggle against the Taliban. The National Movement for Peace and Justice later described that statement as fabricated.

The group said it believes a lasting and fundamental solution to Afghanistan’s complex crises lies within the framework of a political settlement. Such a solution, it said, should include a guaranteed intra-Afghan agreement and an accord between Afghanistan and the international community to establish a legitimate political system, strengthen security and achieve durable peace.

The anti-Taliban political movement stressed that the first step toward this goal is building consensus and unity among political forces. According to the statement, several members who opposed this core strategy and policy have now left the movement.

The movement was founded in late 2022 by several former Afghan government officials. Prominent members include Atmar, a former foreign minister, and Mohammad Masoom Stanekzai, who previously led the former government’s negotiating team.

Part of the interview was published on Sunday, 15 February, on the Pashto-language website of Iran’s state radio.

Speaking in a cautious tone, Mujahid said the Taliban does not support war but could assist the Iranian nation in dealing with the consequences of such an attack.

The Pashto website quoted him as saying that Iran had also emerged victorious during a previous US attack and would succeed again.

He appeared to be referring to a 12-day aerial confrontation between Israel and Iran, in which the United States also participated in what it described as “Operation Midnight Hammer”. During the operation, the US targeted several nuclear facilities in Iran.

Iran’s Pashto radio also quoted Mujahid as saying that the Islamic Republic’s success stemmed from the capabilities of its political system, adding that Iran has the right to defend itself.

Although Tehran has not formally recognised the Taliban as Afghanistan’s official government, it has maintained contact and engagement with the group.