UN Report Uncovers Disturbing Violence Against Women in Afghanistan Under Taliban Rule

Research findings from a news source and an annual report by the United Nations reveal shocking crimes, including abductions, sexual assaults, torture, and forced marriages of women by Taliban fighters in northern and central provinces.

Harrowing Accounts of Organized Violence Against Women in Provinces

A comprehensive investigation conducted in the northern and central provinces of Afghanistan reveals disturbing and systematic events including sexual violence, abduction, forced marriage, and coerced dances of women in Taliban military centers. According to this field report, following the fall of the republic, women have become the primary victims of extremist policies. In non-Pashtun areas, this decline goes beyond the loss of educational and employment rights, with women’s safety and dignity severely compromised, even within their own homes. Local sources confirm that some commanders of the group are taking advantage of families’ poverty or exerting pressure to forcibly acquire underage girls.

The Case of a Girl Imprisoned at Twelve Over Her Father’s Debt

In a glaring example of these atrocities, a video shared by a woman named Qurban Gul from the Bala Murghab district of Badghis province uncovers the tragic fate of her 17-year-old daughter, Sadiqa. This grieving mother revealed that her daughter was taken captive at the age of 12 due to her father’s debts by a local Taliban-affiliated strongman named Khudai Nazar.

Instead of freeing this child, the Taliban courts in Badghis and subsequently the group’s Supreme Court in Kandahar offered her a choice between forced marriage or imprisonment. Sadiqa chose imprisonment and has spent the last five years of her formative teenage years behind bars. Her mother further claims that Hameed, the lawyer handling this case, was mysteriously assassinated two years ago in Herat.

Sexual Crimes Reported in the Official UN Report

In parallel with these revelations, the UN Secretary-General’s annual report on sexual violence related to conflicts has officially corroborated these allegations. The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has documented numerous cases of sexual assault, gang rapes, forced nudity, and torture of protesting women by Taliban security and intelligence personnel in its quarterly report. The UN has warned that due to the complete collapse of an independent judicial system, intimidation of victims, and a lack of support mechanisms, the actual statistics of such honor-related atrocities in Afghanistan are likely much higher than the recorded figures. The international community must urgently intervene to address this humanitarian crisis. Human rights activists have also sounded the alarm on the repression of women in Afghanistan, urging immediate action to safeguard their rights and safety. For more information on the implications of these violations, see this report on human rights in Afghanistan and the UN experts’ response to Taliban policies. Additionally, recent events in Herat, including escalating arrests, further highlight grave concerns over women’s rights and safety in the region.