Afghanistan Archives

Reporter’s Notebook: As suicides rise in Afghanistan, getting people to open up under the Taliban poses enormous challenges

News stories about Afghan women dying by suicide made Zahra Nader want to dig deeper. Getting people to open up took months.

by Zahra NaderAug 28, 2023

This article was republished from a Fuller Project newsletter on August 28, 2023. Subscribe here.

Afghan women take their own lives as despair grows under Taliban rule

An investigation into rising female suicides in Afghanistan as the Taliban erodes women’s rights.

by Zahra Nader, Zan Times reporters in AfghanistanAug 28, 2023

Co-published with The Guardian

A generation at risk: two years after the Taliban takeover, Afghan women and girls are still fighting for basic human rights

The Fuller Project's CEO Xanthe Scharff reflects on women and girl's education two years after the Taliban regained control in Afghanistan.

by Xanthe ScharffAug 17, 2023

Women protesters in Afghanistan call for aid groups to serve Taliban an ultimatum

Protesters say U.N. should withdraw aid from Afghanistan rather than give in to Taliban ban on women workers.

by Zahra JoyaApr 17, 2023

This article was republished from a Fuller Project newsletter on April 17, 2023. Subscribe here.

America Is Again Failing Afghanistan’s Women—and Itself

The deteriorating status of women under Taliban rule is a strategic disaster for Washington.

by Xanthe ScharffMar 8, 2023

Afghan women tell us how their lives have changed

Ahead of International Women’s Day, we asked three Afghan women how their lives had changed since the Taliban took over. These are their stories.

by Zahra NaderMar 6, 2023

This article was republished from a Fuller Project newsletter on March 6, 2023. Subscribe here.

In Afghanistan, threatening the very survival of women

A new Taliban decree forbids Afghan women from working for foreign aid groups. We talk to two experts in the country about its impact.

by Eva RodriguezJan 16, 2023

This Q&A was republished from a Fuller Project newsletter on January 16, 2023. Subscribe here.

In Conversation: Journalist Zahra Joya and Scholar/Activist Esha Momeni on the struggle for women’s rights in Afghanistan, Iran and beyond

There are forces driving the erosion of women’s rights in Afghanistan, Iran and beyond, including in the United States.

by Eva RodriguezOct 10, 2022

This Q&A was republished from a Fuller Project newsletter on October 10, 2022. Subscribe here.

‘We have to fight back.’ Afghan women are losing their hard-won right to work under the Taliban

Afghan women's participation in the workforce rose steadily in the 20 years after the Taliban were ousted from government. Since they returned to power, those gains have been rapidly eroding. Now activists fear a new edict mandating the burqa in public could destroy them altogether.

by Zahra NaderMay 17, 2022

Co-published with TIME

Forced back into the burqa, Afghan women speak out

Afghan women are speaking out in protest of the Taliban’s decree mandating women wear a burqa or niqab at all times in public.

by Zahra NaderMay 16, 2022

This article was republished from a Fuller Project newsletter on May 16, 2022. Subscribe here.

“Afghanistan is hell for queer and trans people”

There are many dangers faced by the Afghan Queer community after the Taliban’s return to power.

by Zahra NaderApr 25, 2022

This Q&A was republished from a Fuller Project newsletter on April 25, 2022. Subscribe here.

What the Taliban means for queer Afghans

During the US occupation, little was done to build a support network for the LGBTQ+ community in Afghanistan. Now their lives are in danger as they struggle to flee.

by Zahra Nader, Zahra MousawiApr 20, 2022

Co-published with Foreign Policy

What it takes to tell Afghan women’s stories

Founder of Rukhshana Media and one of TIME’s 2020 Women of the Year, Zahra Joya on what it takes to report in defiance of the Taliban.

by Xanthe ScharffMar 28, 2022

This Q&A was republished from a Fuller Project newsletter on March 28, 2022. Subscribe here.

Dating in the time of the Taliban

For most Young Afghans coming of age under US occupation, the Taliban was a history lesson. For them, mingling in restaurants and dating was normal. Now, everything has changed.

by Zahra Nader, Kreshma FakhriMar 4, 2022

This story was co-published with The Cut.

Afghanistan’s new government imposes discriminatory restrictions on healthcare

A new requirement from the Taliban— that women be accompanied by a male chaperone when seeking healthcare—is preventing many Afghan women from getting the treatment they need at a time when the country is facing a severe economic crisis, food insecurity and a massive spike in COVID-19 cases.

by Zahra Nader, Nargis AminiMar 2, 2022

This story was co-published with Rukhshana Media and Foreign Policy.

Dispatches from Afghanistan: She attended a protest. Then the Taliban showed up at her door

An Afghan woman is attacked by a Taliban soldier during a protest. Then one shows up at her door the next day. Now she must flee.

by Fatima EtemadiNov 2, 2021

This story was published in partnership between Rukhshana Media and The Fuller Project.

‘My Classmates Have No Hope’

“We were the ones hoping to shape the future, but they took that future away from us,” a teen girl writes, describing the “terror” of attending a high school in northern Afghanistan under Taliban control—the latest dispatch in our series with Rukhshana Media, “Ending America’s Forever War: What is next for Afghan women?”

by Razia MohseniNov 1, 2021

This story was published in partnership between Rukhshana Media and The Fuller Project.

'We Must Stay Strong': As Freedoms Erode, An Aspiring Student Calls for Solidarity, Hope

A young Afghan woman seeks solidarity and hope for women and girls despite Taliban oppression.

by Sakina RezvaniOct 25, 2021

This story was published in partnership with Rukhshana Media and The Fuller Project.

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