Taliban Calls on UN To Assess Women’s Rights Through ‘Islamic Values’

Taliban Calls on UN To Assess Women’s Rights Through ‘Islamic Values’
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The Taliban’s Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice has rejected a United Nations report detailing harassment and abuse of women and girls returning to Afghanistan, calling the report “far from reality, political, and irresponsible.” Saif-ul-Islam Khyber, the ministry’s spokesperson, urged the UN to evaluate women’s issues “in accordance with Islamic values and Afghanistan’s cultural sensitivities.”

In an audio statement released on Saturday, Khyber asserted that women’s rights in Afghanistan are “protected under Islamic Sharia,” and that Afghan women enjoy their Islamic and legal rights, with their dignity and security ensured. He added that the Taliban has taken measures to prevent forced marriages, guarantee the payment of dowries and inheritance, and eliminate harmful social practices. Khyber also challenged the UN to address “the massacre of women and children in Palestine” if it truly cares about defending women’s rights.

These comments came two days after UN Women warned that Afghan women and girls returning from abroad face poverty, early marriage, harassment, and abuse, calling for urgent international intervention to protect them. The UN report highlighted Afghanistan’s worsening economic crisis, climate challenges, and unprecedented restrictions on women and girls.

Previously, UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan Richard Bennett accused the Taliban of using the country’s legal and judicial system as a tool to oppress women and girls, describing this as “a crime against humanity.”