Taliban Outlines School Plans, Stay Silent On Girls’ Secondary Education

Girls’ schools above sixth grade remained closed for a fifth consecutive year under Taliban orders, and the group made no mention of girls’ exclusion from education at the start of the new academic year.

The new school year began in the presence of senior Taliban officials, including the Taliban deputy prime minister for administrative affairs, as well as officials from the ministries of education, information and culture, and other departments under the group’s administration.

The Taliban’s education minister did not attend the opening ceremony.

Noorulhaq Anwar, head of the Taliban’s Administrative Affairs Office, claimed during the ceremony that the curriculum under the previous government had been imported from abroad. He said that curriculum had failed to meet the country’s needs.

The Taliban official added that work on a new curriculum is under way under the Taliban administration and that efforts are being made to design it “based on needs”.

Since returning to power, the Taliban have extensively reshaped Afghanistan’s school and university curricula in line with their strict religious interpretation, raising concerns among Afghans about the spread of extremism and the future of their children.

The new school year began as protests continued over the closure of schools and universities to girls more than four years after the Taliban returned to power.

While schools and universities remain closed to girls, the Taliban have expanded the construction of religious schools

Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said earlier that more than 20,000 religious seminaries are operating under the Ministry of Education. According to him, about 2.5 million students are studying Islamic subjects in those schools.

Former President Hamid Karzai has called for schools and universities to be reopened to girls and for job opportunities to be created for women. He again warned that the continuation of these bans could have irreversible consequences for the country.

In its weekly report, the court said the punishments were carried out between Tuesday and Thursday, March 26, against people accused of various offences.

In a separate statement, the Taliban said one person in Kabul’s Char Asyab district was flogged for an extramarital relationship.

According to the statement, the individual received 39 lashes on Thursday and was sentenced to two years in prison.

Human rights organisation Rawadari has previously reported that the Taliban carried out cruel, inhuman and degrading punishments last year, including six executions under qisas, the stoning of a woman and the flogging of 857 people.

Despite opposition from international organisations to corporal punishment and torture, the Taliban continue to carry out public floggings.

The statement also stressed the need for broad public participation in the structure of power.

Participants also emphasised the protection of Afghanistan’s independence, national sovereignty and territorial integrity; the establishment of a citizen-centred, democratic rule of law; the protection of citizens’ rights and respect for ethnic and social diversity; the strengthening of the role of local communities in governance; and religious moderation.

According to the statement, participants agreed to adopt all of those principles as the basis for their joint work.

The two-day meeting was organised by the group Women for Afghanistan and aimed to strengthen co-ordination among Taliban opponents and create a shared framework for addressing Afghanistan’s crisis.

The chairs of the British Parliament’s defence and international development committees, the head of the UK Parliament’s friendship group with Afghanistan, and several MPs with an interest in Afghan affairs also attended and spoke at the meeting.

Britain is among the Western countries that have called on the Taliban to form an inclusive government and respect women’s rights.

The closing statement said participants underlined the importance of continuing such meetings in order to reach practical, lasting solutions based on national consensus.

Obaidullah Oqab Farooqi, spokesman for the Taliban’s border police, said claims that the crossing would reopen on March 25 are incorrect and baseless.

Earlier, Pakistani sources had said the Torkham crossing would reopen on Wednesday, March 25.

Taliban border officials insist the information about reopening is not accurate.

Sources had said Pakistan was preparing to deport undocumented migrants to Afghanistan and planned to reopen the crossing.

According to Pakistani sources, the decision was made at the request of the Taliban, a claim denied by Taliban officials.

The continued closure of the Torkham crossing, one of the most important trade routes between Afghanistan and Pakistan, has had a significant impact on people’s lives and businesses.

Gorka said work was under way to bring home Mahmood Habibi and Paul Overby, adding that US efforts would continue until all American citizens held in Afghanistan are released.

He said President Donald Trump had promised Coyle’s sisters he would bring him home, a pledge that has now been fulfilled.

Gorka also said Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s decision earlier this month to designate the Taliban as responsible for wrongful detention was part of a process that helped secure Coyle’s release.

Meanwhile, The New York Times reported that the fate of Afghan American Mahmood Shah Habibi remains unclear.

Habibi was detained in the summer of 2022 by armed men on a street in Kabul, according to witnesses, who said the men identified themselves as Taliban intelligence agents. He was blindfolded and driven away in his own vehicle.

The report said intelligence personnel later searched his apartment, seizing his laptop, books and documents. No information about his whereabouts or condition has been made public since then.

The Taliban have repeatedly said they are not holding Habibi and have no information about him.

However, The New York Times reported that information and witness testimony shared with US officials indicate he was, at least initially, held by Taliban intelligence.

The newspaper added that it remains unclear whether Habibi is alive. His brother has repeatedly told media outlets that he believes Mahmood Shah Habibi is alive and in Taliban custody.