Taliban commander asserts that women in Afghanistan have access to a “comfortable and prosperous life.”

In a statement published on Sunday, the Taliban’s supreme commander claimed that his administration has taken the required actions to improve the lives of Afghan women, who are now prohibited from participating in public life and the workforce and whose access to education is severely restricted.

Prior to the Eid al-Adha festival, which will be observed later this week in Afghanistan and other Islamic nations, Hibatullah Akhundzada’s speech was made public.

The Islamic scholar Akhundzada seldom ever leaves the southern Kandahar region of Afghanistan, which serves as the Taliban’s stronghold. He surrounds himself with religious experts who reject education and support women’s rights.
Akhundzada said in his Eid speech that the Islamic Emirate has taken “concrete steps” to safeguard women from numerous forms of traditional oppression, such as forced marriages, and that “their Shariah rights have been protected.”

The statement went on to say that “necessary measures have been taken for the betterment of women as half of society in order to provide them with a comfortable and prosperous life in accordance with the Islamic Shariah.”

Akhundzada seems to have recently taken a more active role in shaping domestic policy, prohibiting Afghan women from participating in public life and employment, particularly with nongovernmental groups and the United Nations, and outlawing Afghan girls’ education beyond the sixth grade.

Five different languages—Arabic, Dari, English, Pashto, and Urdu—were used to convey the message. According to Akhundzada, the bad effects of the last 20 years of occupation connected to women wearing the hijab and “misguidance” will soon come to an end.

All institutions are now required to assist women in obtaining marriage, inheritance, and other rights since “the status of women as a free and dignified human being has been restored,” he said.

The Taliban seized control of Afghanistan in August 2021 as U.S. and NATO soldiers were withdrawing, despite early assurances that their reign would be more moderate than during their last tenure in power in the 1990s. Since then, they have enacted severe policies.

They have restricted media freedoms and banned women from public places like parks and gyms. In addition to deepening a humanitarian catastrophe, the restrictions have sparked a heated international backlash, further isolating the nation at a time when its economy is in freefall.

Akhundzada reaffirmed his demand that foreign nations refrain from meddling in Afghanistan’s domestic affairs. He said that the Taliban leadership had carried out its obligation to maintain positive political and economic ties with all nations, particularly those that practice Islam.

The message from Akhundzada also criticized Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians and urged the Sudanese people and government to put aside their differences and cooperate for harmony and fraternity.