Azadi Briefing

Welcome to The Azadi Briefing, an RFE/RL newsletter that unpacks the key issues in Afghanistan. To subscribe, click here.

I'm Abubakar Siddique, a senior correspondent at RFE/RL's Radio Azadi. Here's what I've been tracking and what I'm keeping an eye on in the days ahead.

The Key Issue

The Taliban's hard-line higher education minister has defended the extremist group's severe restrictions on female education.

The Islamist group has barred girls from attending school past the sixth grade and banned women from going to university.

In a press conference on August 24, Nida Mohammad Nadim said the Taliban's widely condemned restrictions were "not in conflict with Islam."

He added that questioning the Taliban's policies on education were also banned.

But that has not stopped senior Afghan clerics from criticizing Nadim and the Taliban's controversial education policies.

Mawlana Sibghatullah Mawlawizada, one of the most senior clerics in the western city of Herat, on August 25 challenged Nadim to a public debate.

"I urge him to discuss the [religious] legality of [of the ban on] female education in the presence of national and international media," Mawlawizada said in a video message.

Nadim has not publicly responded to Mawlawizada.

Another leading Afghan cleric, Mawlawi Abdul Sami Ghaznavi, also challenged the Taliban. He said it was the group's "responsibility to create favorable conditions for women's education."

Why It's Important: A growing number of Afghan religious scholars are openly challenging the Taliban's restrictions on female education.

Even some Afghan clerics working for the Taliban-led government have publicly opposed the bans. They have said there is no justification for banning female education under Islam.

Islamic scholars across the world have condemned the Taliban's restrictions. Afghanistan is the only country in the Muslim world where teenage girls and women are banned from receiving an education.

What's Next: Despite domestic and international criticism and pressure, the Taliban is unlikely to reverse its education bans.

Since seizing power in 2021, the Taliban's extremist policies have made its unrecognized government an international pariah.

What To Keep An Eye On

Protesters in northwestern Pakistan have blocked Torkham, a key border crossing with Afghanistan. The move has concerned Afghan traders who fear a big financial hit.

Khan Jan Alakozai, a senior official of the Afghanistan-Pakistan Joint Chamber of Commerce, said thousands of trucks transporting fresh Afghan fruits and vegetables have been stranded at the crossing.

"If the border is not opened, some traders will lose their businesses altogether while others will incur mourning custom duties," he told RFE/RL's Radio Azadi on August 29.

Since August 22, members of a Pashtun tribe displaced by a Pakistani military operation have blocked the crossing in protest.

Why It's Important: The frequent closures of Torkham and Chaman, another key crossing, have disrupted trade between the two neighbors.

In recent years, Islamabad has closed the border crossings after clashes between Pakistani and Taliban border guards.

Pakistan has also shuttered the border to pressure the Afghan Taliban to expel the Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan extremist group, which is believed to be based in Afghanistan.

That's all from me for now.

Don't forget to send me any questions, comments, or tips that you have. You can always reach us at azadi.english@rferl.org

Until next time,

Abubakar Siddique

If you enjoyed this briefing and don't want to miss the next edition, subscribe here. It will be sent to your inbox every Friday.

Welcome to The Azadi Briefing, an RFE/RL newsletter that unpacks the key issues in Afghanistan. To subscribe, click here.

I'm Abubakar Siddique, a senior correspondent at RFE/RL's Radio Azadi. Here's what I've been tracking and what I'm keeping an eye on in the days ahead.

The Key Issue

The Taliban has revealed that its notorious religious police detained more than 13,000 Afghans during the past year for violating the extremist group's morality laws.

The Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, which oversees the religious police, said those detained had violated the group's strict Islamic dress code and gender segregation in society.

Other violations, the ministry said, included gambling, the use of illicit drugs, and playing or listening to music, which is banned.

Muhibullah Mukhlis, a ministry official, said on August 20 that the Taliban had "confiscated and destroyed" over 20,000 musical instruments and closed 25 bars across the predominately Muslim country in the past year.

He also added that nearly 300 Taliban members were fired from their jobs for trimming their beards, which is also banned.

Why It's Important: The Taliban's religious police have been accused of creating a "climate of fear and intimidation" in Afghanistan.

The force has publicly punished offenders, often violently. Men and women convicted of violating the Taliban's morality laws have been jailed or publicly flogged, often in fields or sports venues.

"We are terrified and cannot celebrate anything," said a resident of the northern province of Parwan, where the Taliban publicly destroyed confiscated musical instruments on August 20.

"If we celebrate, the Taliban's morality police beat and humiliate us," he told RFE/RL's Radio Azadi while requesting anonymity because of concerns over his safety.

What's Next: The Taliban's dreaded religious police are likely to remain a cornerstone of the extremist group's brutal rule.

This week, the Taliban's spiritual leader, Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada, issued a decree that expanded the powers of the religious police.

What To Keep An Eye On

The Taliban has banned UN's Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Richard Bennett from entering the country.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid on August 21 accused Bennett of providing "false" information about the situation in Afghanistan and spreading "propaganda."

Bennett called the ban "a step backward" and said it "sends a concerning signal" about the Taliban's engagement with the UN and the international community on human rights.

Bennett was appointed in 2022 to monitor Afghanistan's human rights situation. He has traveled to Afghanistan several times and pointed to grave human rights violations, especially against Afghan women and girls.

Afghan and international human rights campaigners have condemned the Taliban's decision.

Heather Barr, associate women's rights director at Human Rights Watch, said "the Taliban are giving up some of their last pretenses of wanting to look rights-respecting."

Why It's Important: While Bennett will still document rights abuses in Afghanistan, the ban will harm the Taliban's efforts to gain international recognition.

Despite increased international engagement with the Taliban-led government, Western nations will likely find it difficult to overlook the group's extensive rights abuses, including denying women most of their fundamental rights and carrying out extrajudicial killings as well as the torture and ill-treatment of detainees.

That's all from me for now.

Don't forget to send me any questions, comments, or tips that you have. You can always reach us at azadi.english@rferl.org

Until next time,

Abubakar Siddique

If you enjoyed this briefing and don't want to miss the next edition, subscribe here. It will be sent to your inbox every Friday.