2.4 million girls banned from Afghan schools since Taliban return: UNESCO

Around 2.4 million girls in Afghanistan have been denied access to secondary education since the Taliban returned to power in 2021, the United Nations said Tuesday, urging an end to such "discrimination." The Taliban administration, recognized solely by Russia, has imposed a series of restrictions on women that the UN has characterized as "gender apartheid." Girls cannot study beyond primary school, a policy the Taliban authorities justify based on their interpretation of Islamic law. The number