Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
September 5, 2021
Taliban militants have been accused of killing a female police officer in the province of Ghor in central Afghanistan.
The woman was shot dead at the family home in front of relatives in Firozkoh, the capital of Ghor Province, her family told the BBC, saying that she was eight months pregnant.
Hassan Hakimi, a civil society activist from the province who resides abroad, told the German dpa news agency that the woman was killed in front of her husband and son.
“We were concerned about women who used to work for the police, at the safe house, and at the women’s affairs directorate,” Hakimi said, adding that “the Taliban has warned them many times.”
The Taliban denied any involvement in the killing.
Since taking back power after the fall of Kabul last month, Taliban leaders have said they would respect the rights of women within the framework of Islamic law.
But incidents of repression against women are being reported in the country.
During their 1996-2001 rule, also guided by Islamic Shari’a law, the Taliban stopped women from working. Girls were not allowed to go to school and women had to wear all-enveloping burqas to go out and then only when accompanied by a male relative.
Afghan women have held several protests for the past two days in Kabul and Herat, advocating for women’s rights and demanding equality, justice, and democracy.
On September 4, the Taliban forcibly broke up a demonstration by dozens of women in Kabul demanding equal rights.
Based on reporting by the BBC and dpa