GLASGOW: When the Taliban banned women from attending university in Afghanistan, Zahra Hussaini thought her dream of becoming a doctor was over. Now, she is continuing her medical degree in Britain.

“Coming to Scotland, it changed everything. It has given me hope for a better future,” the 20-year-old said in Glasgow, where she arrived last month to resume her studies. “I can become a doctor, I can become independent financially and I can serve my family, my community to the best of my ability,” she added.

Hussaini is one of 19 female medical students from Afghanistan who landed in Scotland on Aug 21 following a three-year campaign by the Linda Norgrove Foundation. Norgrove was a 36-year-old Scottish aid worker who was kidnapped by militants in Afghanistan and killed during a failed rescue attempt by US special forces in 2010.

The foundation, formed by her parents in her name, said that the students had often been confined to their homes since the Taliban issued its ban on women studying at universities in Dec 2022.

The Taliban authorities have implemented an austere interpretation of Islamic law since returning to power in Afghanistan in Aug 2021 following the withdrawal of US forces. Women have borne the brunt of restrictions that the United Nations has labelled “gender apartheid”.

Published in Dawn, September 19th, 2024