IEA deals bitter blow to teenage girls as they extend education ban

Eight months after schools in Afghanistan closed, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) reopened education facilities on Wednesday, but dealt a bitter blow to teenage girls when they stated secondary and high school doors for girls would remain closed until further notice.

On Tuesday, the Ministry of Education announced that all schools would reopen on Wednesday. Last week officials said teenage girls would return to class when the new school year starts. Today, Wednesday, officials said otherwise.

“All girls’ schools (secondary and high schools) will remain closed until further notice,” Afghanistan’s state run Bakhtar News Agency quoted an official at the Ministry of Education as saying.

Bakhtar reported that the ministry stated that schools would remain closed for girls until such time as a suitable school uniform, that conforms to Sharia, has been approved and distributed.

The UN in Afghanistan meanwhile was quick to respond and in a tweet stated that it “deplores today’s reported announcement by the Taliban (IEA) that they are further extending their indefinite ban on female students above the 6th grade being permitted to return school.”