Taliban reject call for respect for women’s rights Debate over main battle tank delivery heats up – the nightly update without photos

Afghanistan’s ruling Islamist militant Taliban have rejected recent international calls for women’s rights to be respected in the country. The government cannot allow actions that violate the Islamic Sharia law system, it said in a statement on Saturday.

Taliban spokesman Sabiullah Mujahid stressed that the government is trying to regulate everything in the light of Sharia law. He called on the international community to show understanding for the religious requirements of traditional Afghan society and not to link humanitarian aid to politics.

Women’s rights severely restricted

Eleven member states of the UN Security Council on Friday called on the Taliban to immediately end all oppression of women and girls. The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) recently rejected the Taliban’s claim that their treatment of women and girls complied with Sharia law.

Since taking power in August 2021, the militant Islamists in Afghanistan have massively curtailed women’s rights. The Taliban have banned women from all universities. Girls’ education was restricted by the Islamists just a few months after they came to power. At the end of December, women were also banned from working for non-governmental organisations.

(dsc/sda/dpa)