by Yasmin Sheikh ‘27

 In 2001, the United States targeted Afghanistan as a response to the 9/11 attacks by the terrorist group al-Qaeda, led by Osama Bin Laden. Bin Laden and a network of al-Qaeda training camps were operating in Afghanistan and protected by the Taliban regime. Within months, the United States entered what became called the Global War on Terror.

In 2021, the United States withdrew from its two decade-long efforts to dismantle the Taliban and support a democratically elected government in Afghanistan. Since the United States left, the Taliban has taken control of the country and implemented oppressive laws targeting women and girls with regard to marriage, healthcare, and education.

The United States has a role in Afghanistan, especially after the quick withdrawal of support for Afghanistan after 20 years of hope and promises. In 2025, the Trump administration dismantled the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and cut most funding for foreign aid programs. Humanitarian aid groups have suffered from the lack of funding, and so have women and girls in Afghanistan. The United States has a responsibility to fight the humanitarian crisis by the Taliban by reestablishing foreign assistance to Afghanistan.

The Taliban is an ultraconservative militant group that follows an extremist interpretation of Islam and is heavily influenced by Pashtun tribal communities who believe that a woman’s place is in the house. The President of the Muslim Public Affairs Council in the United States explains that the Taliban’s prohibitions on education for women do not reflect Islamic law, but exhibit cultural biases that go against Islamic values.

The oppressive human rights violations against women and girls in Afghanistan have surpassed any other country in the world, with 166 orders implemented that particularly affect women and girls. Since the United States’ withdrawal in 2021, healthcare has been greatly limited for women to the extent that women are living shorter, less healthy lives. Marriage for women is also extremely restrictive; domestic violence towards women is only a legitimate crime if the woman is left with visible or serious injury and it is hard for women to leave marriages. 

The Taliban banned education higher than 6th grade for girls in 2022. Almost 80 percent of young women are not in any sort of education or employment; only 7 percent of women are employed. The restrictions on education have also contributed to the increases in girls being married off at a young age. Two years after the Taliban took over, almost 30 percent of Afghan girls were married under the age of 18, with many married under 15. Daily life for women and girls in Afghanistan is also severely limited. Half of the women don’t leave their house more than twice a month. If they do go outside, they must be covered head to toe. 

Girls feel isolated, and one way they combat this is by attending secret school. Across Afghanistan, there are thousands of secret schools for girls created to defy the unjust rules and continue to educate girls. Some schools are hidden in homes and existing primary schools, and taught by Afghan women educators at great risk to themselves. The Taliban regularly perform inspections and many girls change their paths to school daily to avoid detection. 

As a global powerhouse, the United States should use its status and influence to take a stand against injustice. The United States should reinstitute the programs it had in place prior to the dismantling of the USAID, and it should honor promises and commitments it made under the previous four presidential administrations to protect the people of Afghanistan from terror and oppression.