How the Taliban Hunt Women in Afghanistan

Fawzia Koofi, former Deputy Speaker of the Afghan Parliament, says the country is experiencing gender apartheid. by Ariel F. Dumont (rome)Thursday, August 20, 2026Inter Press Service ROME, August 20 (IPS) - FIVE years after the Taliban returned to power, Fawzia Koofi, the former Deputy Speaker of the Afghan Parliament, denounces what she describes as “gender apartheid.” Despite bans, terror, and the systematic erasure of women from society, Afghan women continue to resist through underground schools and online solidarity networks. Koofi was also a member of the official delegation that represented the Afghan government during the 2020 peace negotiations with the Taliban in Doha, Qatar.Since the fall of Kabul, she has been living in Europe after being evacuated from Afghanistan, where she continues to advocate for Afghan women and campaign for political alternatives to Taliban rule. Speaking with IPS, Koofi explains how the Taliban have systematically erased women from public life while describing the resilience and determination of Afghan women to continue resisting.IPS:Three years after their return to power, the Taliban have gradually stripped women of all their rights. Today you...