Taliban fire into air to disperse women's rally backing Iran protests

Published September 29, 2022
Afghan women hold placards as they take part in a protest in front of the Iranian embassy in Kabul on Thursday. — AFP
Afghan women hold placards as they take part in a protest in front of the Iranian embassy in Kabul on Thursday. — AFP

Taliban forces fired shots into the air on Thursday to disperse a women's rally supporting protests in Iran over the death of a woman in the custody of morality police.

Deadly protests have erupted in neighbouring Iran for the past two weeks, following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini while detained by the Islamic republic's morality police.

Read: Iranian woman’s death galvanises critics of ‘morality police’

Chanting the same “Women, life, freedom” mantra used in Iran, about 25 Afghan women protested in front of Kabul's Iranian embassy before being dispersed by Taliban forces firing in the air, an AFP correspondent reported.

Women protesters carried banners that read: “Iran has risen, now it's our turn!” and “From Kabul to Iran, say no to dictatorship!”

Taliban forces swiftly snatched the banners and tore them in front of the protesters.

Afghan women hold placards as they take part in a protest in front of the Iranian embassy in Kabul on Thursday. — AFP
Afghan women hold placards as they take part in a protest in front of the Iranian embassy in Kabul on Thursday. — AFP

Defiant Afghan women's rights activists have staged sporadic protests in Kabul and some other cities since the Taliban stormed back to power last August.

The protests, banned by the Taliban, contravene a slew of harsh restrictions imposed by the hardline group on Afghan women.

The Taliban have forcefully dispersed women's rallies in the past, warned journalists against covering them and detained activists helming organisation efforts.

An organiser of Thursday's protest, speaking anonymously, told AFP it was staged “to show our support and solidarity with the people of Iran and the women victims of the Taliban in Afghanistan”.

Since returning to power, the Taliban have banned secondary school education for girls and barred women from many government jobs.

Women have also been ordered to fully cover themselves in public, preferably with the all-encompassing burqa.

So far the Taliban have dismissed international calls to remove the curbs on women, especially the ban on secondary school education.

On Tuesday, a United Nations report denounced the “severe restrictions” and called for them to be reversed.

The international community has insisted that lifting controls on women's rights is a key condition for recognising the Taliban government, which no country has so far done.

Opinion

Editorial

Kurram atrocity
Updated 22 Nov, 2024

Kurram atrocity

It would be a monumental mistake for the state to continue ignoring the violence in Kurram.
Persistent grip
22 Nov, 2024

Persistent grip

An audit of polio funds at federal and provincial levels is sorely needed, with obstacles hindering eradication efforts targeted.
Green transport
22 Nov, 2024

Green transport

THE government has taken a commendable step by announcing a New Energy Vehicle policy aiming to ensure that by 2030,...
Military option
Updated 21 Nov, 2024

Military option

While restoring peace is essential, addressing Balochistan’s socioeconomic deprivation is equally important.
HIV/AIDS disaster
21 Nov, 2024

HIV/AIDS disaster

A TORTUROUS sense of déjà vu is attached to the latest health fiasco at Multan’s Nishtar Hospital. The largest...
Dubious pardon
21 Nov, 2024

Dubious pardon

IT is disturbing how a crime as grave as custodial death has culminated in an out-of-court ‘settlement’. The...