Women's rights

Female Afghan Christian convert flees Taliban, only to risk deportation in Qatar

Since retaking power, the Taliban has largely excluded women from public life. Girls are barred from secondary schools and universities, while women have faced sweeping restrictions.

|ByARSHAD MEHMOOD/THE MEDIA LINE
Taliban personnel detain a woman in Herat, Afghanistan, for allegedly violating the dress code.
Protesters light fires, set roadblocks in Tehran following the death of Mahsa Amini, September 21, 2022.

Islamic Regime instructed universities on how to suppress 2023 staff, student protests - report

The ministry, in a letter addressed to the heads of universities, higher education institutes and research institutes across Iran, demanded that protests be met with a harsh response.

|ByDANIELLE GREYMAN-KENNARD
In this photo illustration a smartphone screen displays the logo of social media app and instant messaging service Telegram, on February 19, 2026 in Bath, England; illustrative

Iranian women, girls die by suicide, honor killing after Telegram sextortion channel

Over the past week, two girls in Lorestan province ended their lives after their photos were leaked on the Telegram channel.

|ByDANIELLE GREYMAN-KENNARD
Women prepare for Eid al-Adha prayers at the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus, Syria, May 27, 2026.

Women’s OIC conference in Pakistan sees Syrian delegation after 14 years

Syria’s minister of social affairs and labor, Hind Kabawat, led the delegation, as few Afghan women were represented in their fight for rights under Taliban rule.

|ByARSHAD MEHMOOD/THE MEDIA LINE

Kentucky judge dismisses Jewish mothers’ lawsuit challenging state abortion ban

Plaintiffs Lisa Sobel, Jessica Kalb and Sarah Baron argued in their lawsuit, filed in 2022, that Kentucky’s abortion law created obstacles to in-vitro fertilization.

JULY 2, 2024ByJACKIE HAJDENBERG/JTA
Jewish Democratic Council of America activists join the Jewish Rally for Abortion Justice outside the U.S. Capitol

Taliban delegation to attend women-free UN-led meeting in Doha

Human rights groups criticized the UN for not having Afghan women at the table with the Taliban in Doha.

JUNE 29, 2024ByDARCIE GRUNBLATT, REUTERS
Afghanistan Taliban officials attend a news conference where they announced they will start issuing passports to its citizens again following months of delays that hampered attempts by those trying to flee the country after the Taliban seized control, in Kabul, Afghanistan October 5, 2021.

While we believe Israeli women, the world must believe them too - opinion

When women come forward as survivors of sexual assault and gender-based violence, they are usually met with support and sympathy - victims and survivors of Oct. 7 have not been treated with humanity.

JUNE 19, 2024ByMARCY GRINGLAS, MEREDITH JACOBS
DELEGATION MEMBERS of ‘I Believe Israeli Women’ visit the Knesset where they attend a meeting of the Global Women’s Coalition Against Gender-Based Violence as a Weapon of War, last month.

'Rape is not resistance': Maccabi World Union launches Global Women’s Forum

Established unofficially at the start of the Israel-Hamas war, the Women’s Forum's primary mission is to increase international pressure for the immediate release of the female hostages.

MAY 28, 2024ByIRIT SKULNIK
Maccabi World Union launches Global Women’s Forum.

Iran's hijab crackdown 'sign of regime's weakness,' party representative tells TML

Passed last month after a lengthy delay following the ‘Woman, Life, Freedom’ protests, a new law in Iran increases punishments for women who don’t wear the hijab.

MAY 6, 2024ByGIORGIA VALENTE/THE MEDIA LINE
February 1 marks World Hijab Day. (Illustrative).

Saudi Arabia sentences woman to 11 years for supporting women’s rights

Manahel al-Otaibi was sentenced in a counter-terrorism court after allegedly speaking out against male guardianship laws and "her choice of clothing."

MAY 4, 2024ByDANIELLE GREYMAN-KENNARD
A woman has her face covered with a scarf to protect her from the heat on a road during a hot summer day in Bhubaneswar, India, May 3, 2024.

Taliban's treatment of women under scrutiny at UN rights meeting

Since they swept back into power, most girls have been barred from high school and women from universities.

APRIL 29, 2024ByREUTERS
Taliban members on the second anniversary of the fall of Kabul, near the US embassy in the Afghan capital, Aug. 15, 2023

Iranian activist: Desperate regime waging all-out war against women

"Long live the resistance. Long live freedom. Long live the indomitable brave women of Iran," said Iranian activist Narges Mohammadi.

APRIL 21, 2024ByTZVI JOFFRE
Thousands of Iranians head to Mahsa Amini's grave in Saqqez, October 26, 2022

Sexual assault and brutal beatings: Iran renews violent hijab crackdown

Videos from Iran showed women struggling as "Morality Police" officers tried to shove them into vans in widespread arrests.

APRIL 17, 2024ByTZVI JOFFRE
Iranian women walk on a street during the revival of morality police in Tehran, Iran, July 16, 2023

Taliban leader doubles down on treatment of women in annual address

The Taliban has suspended girls' education past the sixth grade and banned women from public spaces such as parks, gyms, and bathhouses.

APRIL 12, 2024ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF
TALIBAN LEADER Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada is seen in an undated photograph posted on a Taliban Twitter feed and identified separately by several Taliban officials who declined be named.