In the initial days following their return to power and control over Afghanistan, the Taliban, much like during their previous rule in the 1990s, deprived women and girls of their most basic rights, such as education and employment, and shut down women’s organizations and institutions advocating for women’s rights. Furthermore, the group has issued approximately 70 misogynistic and restrictive decrees against women in various aspects of life. According to independent research and reports, since then, women have faced widespread violence, including murder, forced marriage, sexual assault, and child marriage. In addition, the Taliban’s systematic gender discrimination has completely excluded women from participation in the social, political, and economic spheres of the country.
The majority of these cases of violence against women have remained hidden from public view due to security threats and the restrictions imposed by the Taliban on media freedom. However, Ravi Zan Media has taken the initiative to document the condition of women under Taliban rule and conducted an investigative report on the situation of violence against women in the western region (Herat, Farah, Badghis, and Ghor) over the past year (August 2023 to August 2024) in collaboration with local sources in Afghanistan, active women’s movements, and the support of official nurses and doctors in some hospitals. Our findings reveal a deeply alarming situation, where the restrictions on women’s rights and freedoms, the significant increase in gender-based violence, and the decline in media activity have all compounded to create severe challenges, making life increasingly difficult for women in this region.
According to data obtained by Ravi Zan, nearly two thousand cases of violence against women have occurred in the western region over the past year. The most prevalent forms of violence reported include murder, forced marriage, sexual assault, child marriage, flogging, physical assault, and deprivation of inheritance. Ravi Zan’s data reveal that 1,880 cases of violence against women were documented in this region during a year period, with at least five incidents occurring daily across these four provinces.
The table below shows the cases of violence against women in the western region of Afghanistan over the last year (August 2023 – August 2024):
Murder
According to information gathered through interviews with local sources by Ravi Zan, 29 women have been murdered in the western region of Afghanistan over the past year. Badghis province recorded the highest number of cases with 12 murders, followed by Ghor with 9, Herat with 5, and Farah with 3 cases. The Taliban and domestic violence are the primary factors contributing to these statistics.
One notable case of such violence is the murder of Fatima daughter of Wali Mohammad Haidar. She was brutally killed by her husband, one of Taliban’s members in Ghor province. Fatima, originally from Badghis, had married a Taliban’s member. Fatima’s relatives reported to Ravi Zan that she was killed by her husband, Shahabuddin, on charges of having a relationship with a foreign man.
Kobra (pseudonym), a close relative of Fatima, told Ravi Zan that the accusation of having a relationship with another man was entirely baseless and that Fatima had no relationship with anyone. She added: “Poor Fatima lived with this Talib for several years, had three children with him, and was never involved in such matters. She was a suffering and innocent woman who had no connections with anyone. Her husband was a mentally unstable and abusive person; he killed her and later accused her of having an affair with someone else.”
Domestic violence and honor-related killings are severe issues that have consistently victimized women in Afghanistan.
Ravi Zan has obtained documents from the criminal department of Ghor province hospital, revealing that a significant number of women in this province have been hospitalized due to violence cases. Additionally, several dead bodies have been brought to the hospital.
Karima is another young woman who, before the Taliban’s return, worked in the National Police force in Herat province during the Republic government. She was originally from Ghor province, and had been living in Herat for some time. Karima was among the victims who were killed by the Taliban.
Arifa (pseudonym), a former member of the National Police in Herat, recounts the story of her colleague Karima’s murder by the Taliban:
“Karima was our colleague. She had four children, and her husband was addicted to drugs. She worked to provide for her children. After the Taliban took over, we all became unemployed and lost our source of income. We were also terrified that the Taliban would kill us, so we lived in hiding. During that time, Karima faced severe financial difficulties and couldn’t even pay her rent for several months. Out of fear of the Taliban, she couldn’t leave the house to look for work.”
She added, “In our last phone conversations, Karima always told me that she felt someone was following her whenever she left the house. Finally, out of fear that the Taliban might come to her home and kill her, she took her children and returned to her father’s village in Ghor. I lost contact with her for a while, until one day her daughter Zahra (pseudonym) called me, crying loudly. I asked her what had happened, she said, “Auntie, they’ve killed my beloved mother.”
With considerable effort, we managed to speak with two of her relatives, on the condition that the identity of Karima’s family remains confidential. Ravi Zan’s reporter in Ghor visited an old, mud-brick house where she met a woman around 50 years old named Siyah-Mo (pseudonym), who is one of Karima’s relatives. She recounted the events leading to Karima’s murder:
“After Karima moved to the village, she was desperately trying to find work. One of the neighbors told her that if she wanted, she could work at a wool-spinning workshop. Since Karima had no choice but to work to feed her children, she agreed. The place where Karima went for wool-spinning was about an hour away from her own home. One day, she went there and never returned. Her poor children were alone at home, and that night they came to my door, saying their mother hadn’t come back.”
Siyah-Mo told Ravi Zan that she searched for Karima throughout the night but found no trace of her.
Fawzia is another young woman living in the same. She recounted the tragic events leading to Karima’s death: “I wasn’t related to Karima by blood, but I was heartbroken by her misery, and my heart ached even more seeing the cries of her little children. It was just after dawn when the village elder and a few other elderly men brought Karima’s body to her home from a Mazda van. It was a very difficult situation. My heart broke for her children.”
According to Fawzia, the Taliban killed Karima around 5 p.m. after she returned from work. Her body was discovered by villagers later that night in a nearby ditch. The villagers informed the Taliban.
Currently, Siyah-Mo is taking care of Karima’s young children and hopes that one day they can leave Afghanistan and make their lives.
In the ongoing series of targeted killings and violence against women by the Taliban, the brutality is not confined to assassinations attributed to “unknown individuals.” In some instances, murders have been carried out by Taliban members in the presence of eyewitnesses in districts across western Afghanistan.
On the 6th of Jawza 1403 (May 28, 2024), a Taliban member named Abdul Samad, who serves in the local Taliban command in Karukh district, shot and killed his two wives. During an argument between the two women, this Taliban member shot them both, resulting in their deaths.
This source, who agreed to speak with us on the condition of anonymity, recounted the details of the murder: “Mullah Abdul Samad is a member of the Taliban’s security command in Karukh district. He is an extremely selfish and ruthless man, showing no mercy to anyone, with an abhorrent and abusive attitude toward his family as well as those around him. His wives and children were never safe from his cruelty.”
The source further added, “Even though one of his wives was pregnant, (four months), he showed no compassion. This merciless and godless man killed both of these innocent women, and it wasn’t over anything significant. The women were having an argument, but due to his extreme cruelty, selfishness, and arrogance, he simply grabbed his gun and shot both of them. When we entered the house, it was drenched in blood; a river of blood was flowing through the home. Both women had been mercilessly gunned down.”
The families of the two women have repeatedly visited the district office, demanding the arrest and investigation of the case. However, to date, none of the Taliban’s judicial or legal authorities have responded or taken any action regarding this case.
Forced Marriages
Following the demolition of safe houses, the Human Rights Commission and women’s rights organizations, forced marriage has been increased in Afghanistan and Taliban members are intensively forcing girls into marriage across various regions of the country.
According to the Ravi Zan’s findings, 372 girls have been forcibly married to Taliban members and their sons across the provinces of Herat, Farah, Badghis, and Ghor over the past year (from August 2023 to August 2024).
Maryam, Shayesta, and Zarghuna are example of young girls who have been forcibly married to Taliban commanders. Maryam (pseudonym), a 22-year-old resident of Herat, is a victim of forced marriage to the Taliban. Before the Taliban came to power, she had begun studying engineering at Herat University but was prohibited from her studies following the Taliban’s decree banning education for girls. Maryam, who was previously engaged to a relative, was compelled into marriage with a Taliban commander in Herat (the commander’s identity is withheld at Maryam’s request for her safety).
Maryam recounts: “Before the Taliban came to power, I was engaged to the son of my mother’s uncle. After the Taliban’s arrival, he was unemployed for several months and couldn’t find work despite many efforts. My dowry was 400,000 Afghanis. Eventually, he was forced to go to Iran to work. My father repeatedly asked him to send either 50,000 or 100,000 Afghanis, but despite hard work, he was unable to send that amount. Finally, my father went to the Taliban district office, complaining that my fiancé hadn’t provided the dowry and requesting him to get back and divorce her daughter.”
Maryam adds: “When my father visited the district office, the district officer asked him to show a photo of me and my fiancé. After viewing the photo, he reassured my father, saying, ‘Don’t worry; I’ll get your daughter divorced within an hour.’ He took my father’s phone number and called him the next day, insisting that he come to the office urgently. When my father arrived, the Taliban commander told him that he must marry me to him. He warned that if my father did not comply, he would make him disappear.”
According Maryam, the Taliban commander also reached out to her fiancé, informing him that, from that day forward, he no longer had a wife named Maryam. The commander threatened to make him disappear if he spoke about the situation to anyone. As a result, Maryam was compelled into marriage with the commander without receiving a formal divorce from her previous fiancé.
Another victim of forced marriage is a young girl named Zarghuna (pseudonym). Zarghuna, a graduate in English Literature from Herat University, had been working as a teacher at a school in Herat until five months ago. Zarghuna recounts her experience of forced marriage as follows:
“I was a teacher at one of the schools in Herat. One day, a high-ranking Taliban official, accompanied by several other Taliban members, visited our school for an inspection and to review the situation. The Taliban official came into the office and greeted all the teachers. While I was busy working on students’ attendance sheet, I noticed that he approached my desk, placed his hand on it, and with a peculiar look at my face, asked, ‘Are these long nails yours?’ A few days later, the school principal informed me that the Taliban official had requested my home address so he could arrange a marriage proposal for me.”
Zarghuna states that her family was compelled to relocate to escape the reach of this Taliban official, and they had prevented her from returning to work.
According to Zarghuna, during that period, an unknown family came to propose marriage to her. Fearing the threat of forced marriage and harassment from that Taliban official, her family, lacking sufficient information and investigation, agreed to the marriage with the son of that family. She adds: “We had no knowledge of them and were afraid that the official and his men might raid our home at night and forcibly take me away. We had no choice but to accept the proposal. Within a week, without ever having seen the groom, our engagement and marriage ceremonies were held. After my husband returned from Iran, I discovered that he was an addict, aimless, and offender, and he began to abuse me physically. In my attempt to escape the tyranny and coercion of the Taliban, I found myself trapped in this unfortunate situation.”
Zarghuna states that she was not the only victim of the sensuality of the officials and other employees of the Herat Department of Education. Many teachers and young women were coerced into forced marriages. The officials of the Herat Department of Education consider themselves as having dominion over the teachers and administrative staff, and they compel the families of any young woman or teacher they desire to agree to forced marriages. Zarghuna notes that such practices are not new; previously, the former head of the Department of Education had also forced a young female teacher from one of the schools into marriage with him. Having no other place to live and having been married twice before, he took this teacher as his third wife and resided with her in one of the classrooms of a school.
Sexual Assault
Cases of sexual assault against young girls and women by Taliban members in the western regions are, like other crimes committed by this group, alarmingly prevalent. Many of these incidents have not been reported due to various reasons, including security concerns, the desire to protect family honor, and the fear of retaliation by the Taliban.
According to Ravi Zan’s findings, over the past year, 26 individuals in four western provinces of Afghanistan have been subjected to sexual assault by Taliban members or their associates.
Through extensive efforts, the reporter was able to interview two victims of sexual assault from the Jebrail district of Herat province. Parisa and Sajida, two young women, were initially detained by Taliban forces on the pretext of enforcing mandatory hijab regulations. They were first taken to a local security office and subsequently transferred, according to their accounts, to an undisclosed location resembling a private residence. After enduring two weeks of severe torture and abuse by Taliban members, they were released by taking guarantees from their families.
Parisa recounts her arrest and subsequent assault by Taliban members as follows: “At 7 a.m. on a bit cold Monday morning, Sajida came to get me as usual so we could go to the language course. While we were in our way and had just reached near Milad Hall road, suddenly a Taliban vehicle sped past us and stopped right in front of us. Armed Taliban members, with large turbans and long hair, surrounded us with their darkened eyes. They began to verbally assault us, shouting, ‘What kind of appearance is this for you to be out? Shameless whores, don’t you have any modesty? Where is your hijab?'”
Parisa adds that under the pretext of enforcing mandatory hijab regulations, she and her friend were forcibly loaded into a vehicle and taken to a security office. There, they were subjected to degrading and shameless treatment as if they were criminals or immoral individuals. She says that after arriving at the police station, they confiscated and examined our mobile phones. They checked our Facebook pages and, because we had posted several times about the Taliban closing schools, they accused us of espionage.
After being interrogated by the local commander and several other Taliban members, they were blindfolded and gagged that evening. Both were then transported by vehicle to an unknown location, which took approximately two hours.
Parisa recounts, “The place we were taken to felt more like a private residence than a government facility. Upon arrival, they took Sajida downstairs and brought me upstairs. What followed was the scariest and terrifying week of my life, a time shrouded in darkness. The next night, several Taliban members, along with the local commander, entered the room. They forced me to sit in a chair in the center of the room. The commander kept asking, ‘Who are you taking orders from? Speak like a decent girl and tell us who your master is. Tell me who sent you as an agent to spy and tarnish our regime?’
No matter how much I cried and pleaded, swearing that we were not spies and begging them to let us go, my cries fell on deaf ears. They continued to accuse us, repeating that we were shameless whores with no fear of God. They blamed us for corrupting Herat.”
Parisa recounts that after hours of psychological and physical torture, the district commander and his men left the room, signaling the guard to dim the lights and lock the door. She describes the harrowing assault by the Taliban in these words:
“Every night, several Taliban members would enter the room under the guise of interrogation, armed with wooden planks and rubber hoses. They hit me so severely that I could no longer sit. They focused their blows on my breasts and buttocks. One night, they beat me so brutally that I lost consciousness. When I woke up the next morning, I tried to move and get up, but what I saw turned my entire life into a dark, terrifying nightmare. I had been assaulted, and I can’t even begin to describe the horror of those moments. I’m sorry.”
Parisa recounts that after being held captive in that house for eight days and nights, enduring severe torture, she and Sajida were returned to the local security office. There, they were forced to sign written commitments, along with their fathers and brothers, pledging not to leave their homes without wearing the prescribed hijab, and not to write anything against the regime on social media.
Sajida, Parisa’s friend who was arrested with her on that day, declined to speak with our media outlet. However, Parisa shares that Sajida was engaged, and her fiancé was working in Iran. When he knew about the incident, Sajida’s fiancé’s family came forward and issued her a divorce.
Underage Marriages
According to our research and the data collected, over the past year, 290 girls in the western region of Afghanistan have been forced into marriage with Taliban members or their relatives, despite not having reached the legal age of marriage.
Regarding underage marriages, the only officially registered documents at the Ghor Provincial Court number around 20 cases, most of which involve individuals affiliated with the Taliban.
Sources report that in all of these cases, a fair judgment has not been rendered. Instead, the cases have been referred for internal family resolution by the judge and other interested parties within the court. Additionally, Taliban officials have deemed the cases involving these girls and women as inadmissible.
One of these cases belongs to a 14-year-old young girl who, in addition to being subjected to forced marriage, is also below the legal age of marriage.
Farahnaz, who has approached the Court of Appeals in Ghor Province with her elderly mother, recounts her experience of forced marriage as follows: “I was 13 years old and studying in the fifth grade when my father, due to extreme poverty, sold me to a Taliban member for 300,000 Afghanis. He had promised to marry me off after three years, but six months later, he paid my father the full amount and forcibly took me to his home.”
Farahnaz explains that the Taliban member has another wife and eight children, both sons and daughters, and his youngest daughter is in my age. She recounts the harsh conditions she endured in the Taliban member’s home, which brings tears to her eyes and she adds:
“During the five months I spent in his house, I endured numerous abuses. He himself beat me, and his older children also hit me. His wife also beat me, insisting that I must stay in the kitchen, learn to cook, and do household chores. On several occasions, I lost consciousness due to their severe beatings. Finally, one morning, I managed to escape from his house and return to my father’s home.”
Farahnaz’s mother, holding several petitions in her hands, says, “For the past three weeks, I have been coming to the courthouse every day with my daughter, going to the judges in the hope that they might take action and grant my daughter a divorce from this brutal man. I have submitted a petition stating that my daughter is very young and has been repeatedly beaten by her husband, his first wife, and their children.”
Despite all their visits to the court, no one has responded to them. The Taliban officials at the court have dismissed their pleas, stating that the issue is a “family matter” and advised them to resolve it among themselves.
Farahnaz’s mother says, “Many women and girls like us come to this court with cases ranging from underage marriages to forced marriages and instances of abuse, but no one listens to women’s voices. Now, we are bewildered about what to do and where to seek refuge.” There is no accountability, and no one is following up on our petitions.”
Another case of underage marriage involves Zahra, a girl from Ghor Province, who was forcibly married by her brother, despite having no legal or religious authority to arrange such a marriage. She was married off to an individual named Abdul Karim under duress and coercion.
Abdul Karim, the individual who forcibly married Zahra through her brother, has filed a complaint against Zahra in court, stating that he wishes to continue living with her. However, Zahra does not consent to this marriage and does not want to continue living with him.
Zahra, now of legal age, has submitted a petition to the court requesting a divorce and separation from Abdul Karim. She states that she has never accepted or consented to the marriage, which was solely a result of coercion by her brother who forced her into this marriage.
Zahra describes her situation as follows: “I never accepted this marriage. My brother forced me to agree through severe beatings, but the truth is, I was never willing to marry this person. Now, I have submitted my petition to the court and, despite several visits and pleas to the judges, I have unfortunately received no result. Everyone seems to be working in favor of that man. The court’s decision has been made in his favor, and the judges are telling me to go and live with him. They insist that I am his legally married wife and must live with him.”
Whipping
The public flogging of women by Taliban forces is another form of violence that occurs daily in many provinces of Afghanistan. Following the Taliban’s return to power, the group’s spokesperson announced in the media that they are committed to upholding human rights solely within the framework of Islamic law.
Although the public flogging of men and women has been carried out by this group in various courts, the enforcement of this punishment intensified after the group’s leader, Mullah Hibatullah Akhundzada, in an audio message released on March 24 by Afghanistan’s national media under Taliban control, emphasized his support for the punishment of retribution, stoning, and flogging. He reiterated, “We implement the rules of Sharia: even if it is said that it violates women’s rights, stone them. We will carry out the punishment for adultery in public, we will stone women. We will enforce the sharia law set by Allah in public.”
Many women in the western region have been victim to the punishment of flogging. Based on our findings, in the past year, 56 people in four provinces of western Afghanistan have been flogged by the Taliban.
We spoke with two of these women, who requested to be anonymous in this report. We recount their experiences and describe the circumstances of their flogging in their own words.
Amina (pseudonym), a 21-year-old woman from Farah province, was accused of having an extramarital relationship, for which she spent three months in Farah’s provincial prison and endured 30 lashes. She says, “The Taliban falsely accused and slandered me, leading to my imprisonment and the lashes.” Amina adds that one day, while on her way to visit her aunt’s house, accompanied by her aunt’s 10-year-old son, she encountered a rickshaw driven by a former university classmate. She decided to ride in the rickshaw, and while conversing with her classmate, she was arrested by the Taliban.
Amina recalls, “He was our class representative in the first year of university before the separation of male and female classes. He was like a caring brother, printing out our chapters and discussing our academic issues with the professors. That day, I was delighted to see him, so I got into his rickshaw and headed towards my aunt’s house. Along the way, I asked him about the end of his university studies and the situation of our other classmates. We hadn’t yet reached my aunt’s house when a white Corolla car suddenly swerved in front of the rickshaw, and several men got out. One of them immediately ran towards the rickshaw driver, knocked him to the ground with a gun, and two others came into the rickshaw, hurling insults and dragging me out. I was bewildered, unsure of what was happening. They used vile language and treated me harshly, calling me a prostitute at every moment as they forcibly pushed me into their car.”
Amina adds that there were four Taliban members who threw her into the back seat of a white private Corolla and took her to their regional office. With no women accompanying them, Amina was seated between two men in the back of the car. “They kept me for two days and nights in one of the dark basement rooms of the Directorate for the Promotion of Virtue in Farah province. It was a small, dark room with no facilities—not even a toilet or washroom.”
She further explains that after two days, they took her to court, where she was charged with having an extramarital relationship without any access to a defense lawyer. “No matter how much I swore and cried, insisting that I had no relationship with the rickshaw driver, who was just a classmate from my university days, no one listened to me.”
This young woman says, “A few days later, my court ruling arrived, and the judge sentenced me to 30 lashes and three months in prison. That day, they brought me out into the yard of the Directorate for the Promotion of Virtue. There were no female police officers present; all the Taliban members, including the head of the Directorate, had gathered there. One of the Taliban, who wore a black turban and a white robe, approached me with a large rubber hose, the kind used to draw water from wells. He angrily and harshly ordered me, ‘Cover your face, you wretched prostitute!’
Amina, who still hasn’t forgotten the pain of those lashes, adds with tears streaming down her face that as she was covering her face, she suddenly felt a heavy and terrifying blow strike her shoulder, repeated several times until she lost consciousness from the intense pain. The pain persisted throughout her three-month imprisonment, tormenting her day and night.
Physical Assaults
According to Ravi Zan findings, between August 2023 and August 2024, approximately 732 women in the four provinces of western region (Herat, Farah, Badghis, and Ghor) have been subjected to physical assaults by their husbands or close relatives. Badghis has the highest number of recorded incidents, with 280 cases, followed by Ghor with 275 cases, Herat with 95 cases, and Farah with 82 cases.
Halima (pseudonym), aged 34, lives in the city of Qala-e-Naw. She has been repeatedly beaten by her husband. According to her, she has lost consciousness twice due to severe beatings and has been unconscious for half a day. Halima has two daughters and has been assaulted by her husband because of giving birth to girls and not boys.
A woman named Maida Gul, holding a petition, has approached the court in Badghis province. She cites repeated physical abuse by her husband and other members of his family as the reasons for her complaint.
Maida Gul has been expelled from her home by her husband and his family, despite having a one-and-a-half-year-old breastfeeding infant. They took her son away from her and sent her back to her father’s house.
She describes her situation as follows: “For the past two months, my daily routine has been going to the courthouse and begging the judges. I have approached several judges, pleading for them to help me. This cruel man, who fears neither God nor justice, has taken my breastfeeding son from me and has forced me out of my home, according to his family’s orders.”
Maida Gul, who has endured significant suffering from her husband’s abuse and had considered leaving her home, yet she is willing to endure all that suffering and injustice just to be reunited with her children.
Additionally, Ravi Zan media has reached to some registration documents from the hospitals in Ghor and Badghis. These documents reveal that several women and girls, bearing signs of beatings and, in some cases, in critical condition, were brought to these hospitals. The documents also include records of deceased women transferred to these medical centers, with the exact dates on it.
Deprivation of Women’s Inheritance Rights
The denial of women’s inheritance rights by male family members, as well as the endorsement of such practices by Taliban courts, is another prevalent injustice against women in the western region. Numerous cases illustrate how many women have suffered from this issue, with their rights being lost for various reasons and excuses.
Samiaa is a young woman from one of the districts in Farah, whose brothers have taken her inheritance rights and forcibly seized her father’s land, leaving her deprived of her rightful share.
Samiaa says: “I have five children, and my husband is disabled and cannot provide for us. We live in rented houses. Even though my mother and brothers know that I am in dire need of money and have a right to my inheritance, they have all colluded, claiming that my father had deprived me of my inheritance and that I have no claim to the land and property.”
She says that “all our relatives and acquaintances witness that my father has never wrote any letter of will or deprived me of my inheritance; however, my brothers claim that while our father was alive, he gave the cultivated lands and the house to us, so I have no share in them. I also went to a local lawyer, but he said it was a family dispute and he couldn’t help.”
Desperate and disheartened by the indifference of her mother and brothers, Samiaa wrote a petition with the advice of a friend and submitted it to the court in Farah province, and then to the Vice and Virtue directorate in the province, hoping to find a way to claim her rights. However, she has not received any results so far: “Following the advice of a neighbor, I submitted a petition to the court. They told me to go to the Vice and Virtue directorate. I took my petition there and explained that my brothers are not giving me my inheritance. I have been wandering for weeks, submitting petitions one day to the court and the next day to the Vice and Virtue directorate, but no one has responded so far. I have now lost hope even in following petitions.”
This data is reported by Ravi Zan media while independent foreign organizations have previously published numerous reports about the increasing violence against women and girls in Afghanistan under Taliban rule.
