Since taking control on August 15 last year, the Taliban have rolled back the marginal gains women made during two decades of US intervention in Afghanistan. About 40 women – chanting “bread, work and freedom” – marched in front of the education ministry building in Kabul, before militants dispersed them by firing their weapons into the air, an AFP correspondent said. Some female protesters who fled to nearby shops were chased and beaten by Taliban fighters with their rifles. Demonstrators carried a banner reading “August 15 is a black day” as they demanded rights at work and political participation. “Justice! Justice! We’re sick of ignorance,” they chanted, many not wearing face veils. Taliban fighters fired into the air and attacked protesters to break up the gathering. Photo: Wakil Kohsar/AFP/Getty Images “Unfortunately, the Taliban from the intelligence agency came and fired in the air,” said Zolia Parsi, one of the organizers of the march. They broke up the girls, tore up our banners and confiscated the cell phones of many girls. But Munisa Mubariz vowed to continue fighting for women’s rights. “If the Taliban want to silence this voice, it is not possible. We will protest from our homes,” he said. Some journalists covering the demonstration – the first women’s rally in months – were also beaten by the Taliban, an AFP correspondent said. While Taliban authorities have allowed and promoted some anti-US rallies, they have denied permission for any women’s rally since returning to power. Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you to the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. After seizing control last year, the Taliban promised a softer version of the hardline Islamist rule that characterized their first term in power from 1996 to 2001. But many restrictions have already been imposed, especially on women, to conform to the movement’s strict vision of Islam. Tens of thousands of girls have been excluded from secondary schools, while women have been barred from returning to many government positions. Women have also been banned from traveling alone on long journeys and can only visit public gardens and parks in the capital on separate days from men. In May, the country’s supreme leader and Taliban chief, Himbatullah Akhundzada, ordered women to be fully covered in public, including their faces – ideally with a burqa. Since the ban on secondary education was announced in March, several clandestine schools for these girls have sprung up in several provinces. The UN and rights groups have repeatedly condemned the Taliban government for imposing restrictions on women. These policies show a “pattern of absolute gender segregation and aim to make women invisible in society,” Richard Bennett, the UN’s special rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan, told reporters in Kabul during a visit in May. On Thursday, Human Rights Watch called on the Taliban to “reverse their appalling and misogynistic” decision to ban women from education. “This would send a message that the Taliban are willing to reconsider their most egregious actions,” Feresta Abbasi, an Afghanistan rights researcher, said in a statement. Some Afghan women initially pushed back the curbs, holding small demonstrations. But the Taliban soon rounded up the leaders, holding them in wait while denying they had been captured.
