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IEA to open high schools for girls next week
The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) will allow girls around Afghanistan to return to class when high schools open next week, an education official said on Thursday, after months of uncertainty over whether the IEA would allow full access to education for girls and women, Reuters reported.
“All schools are going to open to all boys and girls,” Aziz Ahmad Rayan, a spokesman for the Ministry of Education, told Reuters.
“But there are some conditions for girls,” he said, adding that female students would be taught separately from males and only by female teachers.
In some rural areas where there was a shortage of female teachers, he said that older male teachers would be allowed to teach girls, Reuters reported.
“There is no school that will close for this year. If there is any school that closes, it is the responsibility of the education ministry to open it,” Rayan added.
Allowing girls and women into schools and colleges has been one of the key demands the international community has made of the IEA since it toppled the Western-backed government last August.
Most countries have so far refused to formally recognise the IEA, amid concerns over their treatment of girls and women and allegations of human rights abuses against former soldiers and officials from the ousted administration.
The IEA have vowed to investigate alleged abuses, and say they are not seeking revenge on their former enemies.
The last time the IEA ruled Afghanistan, from 1996 to 2001, they banned female education and most employment. Since regaining power, boys and men have returned to education in far greater number than girls and women, Reuters reported.
The Islamic Emirate (IE) is seeking to run the country according to its interpretation of Islamic law while at the same time accessing billions of dollars in development aid that it desperately needs to stave off widespread poverty and hunger.
Sanctions against some leading members of the group have complicated the situation.
The IEA say they respect women’s rights in accordance with Islamic law and local custom. But many women have reported restrictions on access to public life, including jobs, forcing some to drop out of the workforce.
Heather Barr, associate women’s rights director at Human Rights Watch, urged the international community against complacency after the announcement.
“There has been a huge focus by donors on girls’ secondary schools — multiple donors have told me they see this issue as ‘totemic’,” she said.
Barr added that reopening schools would not necessarily mean that the broader rights of women and girls in society would be protected.
Seventeen-year-old Farzana said she was already washing and ironing her uniform as she anticipated joining her friends in her Kabul classroom. After six months at home, she said she and others had struggled mentally being away from studies.
“I feel very powerful. We can show not only (the Taliban) but also the world (that) we never stop, and Afghanistan won’t return to previous decades,” she said.
Turkish intelligence agents have captured a senior member of Daesh near the Durand Line, reportedly preventing planned suicide attacks in Turkey and other countries, according to Turkey’s state-run Anadolu Agency on Monday.
The suspect, identified as Mehmet Goren, is a Turkish citizen. He was apprehended during a covert operation and transferred to Turkey. Details on the timing of the operation or the involvement of Afghan and Pakistani authorities were not disclosed.
According to the report, Goren had risen through the ranks of Daesh and was allegedly tasked with carrying out suicide bombings in Turkey, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Europe.
Daesh has a history of deadly attacks in Turkey, including the January 1, 2017 shooting at an Istanbul nightclub that killed 39 people.
Anadolu Agency reported that Goren’s arrest also provided intelligence on the group’s recruitment strategies and planned activities.
Dozens of needy families in Kabul’s fifth district have received essential winter assistance from the Bayat Foundation, as part of ongoing efforts to ease hardship during the cold season and worsening economic conditions.
According to foundation officials, the aid package includes staple food items such as flour, rice, and cooking oil, along with warm blankets to help families cope with freezing temperatures. Haji Mohammad Ismail, Deputy Head of Bayat Foundation, said the distribution began in Kabul and will soon be expanded to other provinces.
“Our assistance includes flour, rice, cooking oil, and blankets,” Ismail said. “Today, we started distributing these items in Kabul’s fifth district, and God willing, the aid will reach other provinces in the near future.”
Afghanistan continues to face widespread poverty, unemployment, and food insecurity, with many families struggling to meet basic needs, particularly during winter when access to work and heating becomes more difficult.Humanitarian organizations and charitable foundations have stepped up relief efforts to support those most affected.
Beneficiaries welcomed the assistance, describing it as a lifeline. “May God bless you for helping the poor. We had nothing and no work,” said one recipient. Another added, “Thank you for your help. Our flour was almost finished.”
Bayat Foundation officials stressed that winter aid distributions will continue in Kabul and other provinces in the coming days, as part of their broader commitment to supporting needy families across the country.
Since the Islamic Emirate came to power, approximately 6.8 million Afghans have returned home, either voluntarily or forcibly, from neighboring countries and other nations, according to the Minister of Refugees and Repatriation.
Mawlawi Abdul Kabir, speaking at a meeting on finalizing a draft plan for a permanent migration solution in Afghanistan, added that 1.3 million Afghans have been internally displaced due to natural disasters during the same period.
With winter approaching, widespread poverty and severe cold are threatening thousands of lives. Meanwhile, the forced expulsion of Afghan migrants from neighboring countries, particularly Iran and Pakistan, continues.
The Islamic Emirate has repeatedly urged neighboring states to allow migrants to return voluntarily. According to UNHCR, over two million Afghans have returned from Iran and Pakistan since the start of 2025.
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