After the Taliban’s return to power on August 15, 2021, women in Afghanistan are treated as second-class citizens, systematically stripped of their rights. Over eighty decrees issued by the Taliban confine women to their homes and ban girls from attending school, turning Afghanistan into a prison for women and girls.

This gender apartheid is reinforced by new educational curricula and severe restrictions on women’s participation in every aspect of society. Women’s protests against these injustices have been met with harsh repression, including imprisonment, torture, and accusations of being influenced by foreign entities.

Inside the Taliban’s gender apartheid, a joint project of the Civic Engagement Project and the Atlantic Council’s South Asia Center, highlights the stories of women who have courageously resisted these injustices—women who have endured imprisonment and brutality for their peaceful demands for basic rights. By refusing to remain silent and shedding light on the violence they face, their testimonies serve as evidence in the fight for justice.

The women who have survived this regime are now calling for international recognition of the Taliban’s gender apartheid as a crime against humanity. This recognition would not only validate their suffering but could also challenge the Taliban’s grip on power and pave the way for transitional justice, offering a potential path to healing and justice for Afghan women and girls. 

The South Asia Center is the hub for the Atlantic Council’s analysis of the political, social, geographical, and cultural diversity of the region. ​At the intersection of South Asia and its geopolitics, SAC cultivates dialogue to shape policy and forge ties between the region and the global community.

Content

New Atlanticist

Nov 24, 2021

Embracing Afghan refugees is a strategic opportunity for the US

By Sarah Dawn Petrin

More than simply a humanitarian gesture, it represents the best possible continuation of US foreign policy.

Afghanistan Human Rights

Inflection Points

Nov 21, 2021

With the US in ‘strategic contraction,’ allies take a new approach to partnership

By Frederick Kempe

What our partners see now is a less externally confident, more internally focused United States guided by a sober calculation of its leverage and resources, burdened by public weariness with the cost of international leadership and hobbled by domestic political polarization. 

Afghanistan India

In the News

Nov 19, 2021

Halaimzai was quoted in Gandhara News: ‘Grotesque And Wrong’ – Foreign Diplomats Called Out For Meeting Taliban Without Women

By Atlantic Council

Afghanistan Politics & Diplomacy

In the News

Nov 18, 2021

Rahmani on Seneca’s 100 Women to Hear Podcast to discuss Afghanistan under the new rule

By Atlantic Council

Afghanistan Extremism

In the News

Nov 14, 2021

Alam quoted in the Medialine News: Taliban Regime Says it Has ISIS Afghan Affiliate on the Run

By Atlantic Council

Afghanistan Conflict

In the News

Nov 12, 2021

Ahmad with MEI: Afghanistan Under the Taliban

By Atlantic Council

Afghanistan Indo-Pacific

In the News

Nov 12, 2021

Sakhi with the Burkle Center: A Crisis within a Crisis: Accountability, Economic Realities & Humanitarian Need in Afghanistan

By Atlantic Council

Afghanistan Human Rights

In the News

Nov 11, 2021

Kohistany in King 5 on her efforts to relocate Afghan refugees.

By Atlantic Council

Forward Defense nonresident senior fellow Lyla Kohistany speaks on King 5 news about her organization's role in helping Afghan refugees.

Afghanistan Civil Society

New Atlanticist

Nov 10, 2021

Afghanistan veterans’ sacrifices were not made in vain

By Roya Rahmani

The seeds of change that US veterans helped to plant over the past twenty years in Afghanistan will continue to flourish.

Afghanistan Crisis Management

SouthAsiaSource

Nov 9, 2021

Issues and mistrust in US-Pakistan relations

By Nazir Ahmad Mir

The August 2021 withdrawal of the United States from Afghanistan has yet again exposed the fragility of Pakistan-US relations. Over the growing—and allegedly dubious—role of Pakistan in its commitment to the War on Terror, increasing concerns are being expressed in the United States about the nature of its relations with Islamabad.

Afghanistan Pakistan

Experts