Taliban Deprived 1.4 Million Girls of Schooling, Says UNESCO

The Taliban has deliberately deprived 1.4 million Afghan girls of schooling since it retook the country three years ago, says the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Afghanistan is the only country in the world where females are banned from secondary education and universities. The Taliban regained power in August 2021, 20 years after being ousted by a U.S.-led force in the wake of 9/11, which was organized from Afghanistan by their ally, Osama bin Laden. Their interpretation of Islamic law, or sharia, is that girls should not be educated beyond the sixth grade. UNESCO said 1.4 million girls had been denied access to secondary education, up by 300,000 compared to its previous survey in April 2023....