Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Malala ‘fears’ for her Afghan sisters

Malala ‘fears’ for her Afghan sisters

NOBEL Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai on Tuesday (17) said she feared for “my Afghan sisters" in the wake of the Taliban's stunning takeover of the country.

"We will have time to debate what went wrong in the war in Afghanistan, but in this critical moment, we must listen to the voices of Afghan women and girls. They are asking for protection, for education, for the freedom and the future they were promised," Malala, 24, wrote in an op-ed published in The New York Times.


"We cannot continue to fail them. We have no time to spare."

Malala, long an advocate for girls' education, survived a Pakistani Taliban assassination attempt when she was just 15 years old when the militants shot her in the head in rural northwest Pakistan.

Since then the Oxford graduate has become a global figure promoting education for girls.

The Taliban took effective control of Afghanistan on Sunday (15) when president Ashraf Ghani fled and the insurgents walked into Kabul with no opposition.

It capped a staggeringly fast rout of the country's major cities in just 10 days, following two decades of war that claimed hundreds of thousands of lives.

The Taliban led a pariah regime from 1996 to 2001, infamous for a brutal rule in which girls could not go to school, women were barred from taking up jobs that would put them in contact with men, and people were stoned to death.

The recent takeover has triggered fears of renewed oppression, in particular towards women and girls.

"I cannot help but be grateful for my life now," wrote Malala.

"After graduating from college last year and starting to carve out my own career path, I cannot imagine losing it all - going back to a life defined for me by men with guns," she said.

"Afghan girls and young women are once again where I have been - in despair over the thought that they might never be allowed to see a classroom or hold a book again."

On Tuesday (17), a Taliban spokesman indicated the militants would not make the full burqa - a one-piece overgarment that covers the entire head and body - compulsory and sought to dismiss concerns that women would be barred from education.

Women "can get education from primary to higher education - that means university. We have announced this policy at international conferences, the Moscow conference and here at the Doha conference (on Afghanistan)," Suhail Shaheen said.

But Malala raised skepticism of that vow.

"Given the Taliban's history of violently suppressing women's rights, Afghan women’s fears are real," she wrote.

"Already, we are hearing reports of female students being turned away from their universities, (and) female workers from their offices."

More For You

Streeting hails India’s global role as Labour backs bilateral relations

Wes Streeting addresses the Republic Day reception at the Guildhall in London last Tuesday (28),joined by Sir Lindsay Hoyle and Vikram Doraiswami

Streeting hails India’s global role as Labour backs bilateral relations

WES STREETING spoke of the priority prime minister Sir Keir Starmer and the Labour government attach to relations with India when he addressed a Republic Day reception at the Guildhall in London last Tuesday (28).

But the secretary of state for health and social care won over the large Indian crowd by paying an unexpected tribute to Rishi Sunak.

Keep ReadingShow less
Sri Lanka seeks to negotiate with Adani over renewable energy plants

Gautam Adani

Sri Lanka seeks to negotiate with Adani over renewable energy plants

SRI LANKA’S government started talks with India’s Adani Group to lower the cost of power from two wind power projects the group will build in the island nation’s northern province, the cabinet spokesman said last Tuesday (28).

Sri Lanka has been reviewing the group’s local projects after US authorities in November accused billionaire founder Gautam Adani and other executives of being part of a scheme to pay bribes to secure Indian power supply contracts. Adani has denied the allegations.

Keep ReadingShow less
Badenoch proposes stricter citizenship rules for all migrants

Kemi Badenoch delivers speech on January 16, 2025 in London, England. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

Badenoch proposes stricter citizenship rules for all migrants

CONSERVATIVE PARTY on Thursday (6) proposed a clampdown on all migrants by tightening citizenship rules and barring social benefit claimants from residency rights.

Kemi Badenoch, who took over from Rishi Sunak in November last year, outlined her first major policy agenda as Tory leader in a move seen as an attempt to win back the support of Conservative voters drawn to the far-right anti-immigrant Reform party.

Keep ReadingShow less
New body led by Sir Sajid Javid aims to amplify ‘unheard’ voices
Sajid Javid

New body led by Sir Sajid Javid aims to amplify ‘unheard’ voices

A NEW independent commission to improve cohesion would engage across all nations and regions of the UK by moving beyond Westminster-centric discussions and include more diverse voices, the director of British Future thinktank has said.

Sunder Katwala said building confidence across different groups will be a priority, as economic pressures and tensions due to Middle East conflict have polarised communities in the UK.

Keep ReadingShow less
Pakistan court gives unusual punishment to Youtuber Rajab Butt for owning lion cub

Pakistani zookeeper Mohammad Amir holds the confiscated lion cub at Lahore’s safari zoo last Tuesday (28)

Pakistan court gives unusual punishment to Youtuber Rajab Butt for owning lion cub

A PAKISTANI YouTube star who was gifted a lion cub on his wedding day avoided jail after promising a judge to upload animal rights videos for a year.

Rajab Butt has one of the largest online followings in south Asia, and his week-long nuptials in December were plastered over celebrity gossip websites.

Keep ReadingShow less