UN urges Afghan Taliban not to block women's medical training

The UN mission to Afghanistan on Wednesday urged the Taliban government to reconsider a reported plan to ban women from attending medical training institutes, in the latest move to restrict women's education.

A health ministry source and managers from private medical institutes, which offer training in subjects such as midwifery and nursing, told AFP on Tuesday the public health ministry had issued a directive from the Taliban supreme leader to suspend women's attendance.

There has been no official Taliban government confirmation of the ban, but institute employees said they had been given 10 days to hold final exams before women would be barred.

The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) said it was "extremely concerned" by the reports and urged the Taliban government to "reconsider implementing" the rule.

"If implemented, the reported directive poses further restrictions on women and girls' rights to education and access to healthcare," a statement said.

"Ultimately, it will have a detrimental impact on Afghanistan's healthcare system and on the country's development."

A senior health ministry source told AFP the ban would squeeze an already suffering health sector.

"We are already short of professional medical and para-medical staff and this would result in further shortages," the source said.

The ban would be the latest restriction on women's education since the Taliban swept to power in 2021 and imposed a strict interpretation of Islamic law.

Women and girls have been barred from secondary school and university as part of restrictions the UN has dubbed "gender apartheid".

Women students have since flocked to health institutes, which offer courses in a dozen health-related subjects, with some 35,000 enrolled, health ministry sources said.

The European Union on Wednesday also urged the Taliban to "reverse this discriminatory policy", calling it an "an unjustifiable attack on women's access to education".

Amnesty International warned a ban would "have devastating consequences for the health of women in the country that has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world".

The reports drew far-reaching criticism, including from Afghan cricket superstar Rashid Khan.

"Providing education to all is not just a societal responsibility but a moral obligation deeply rooted in our faith and values," Khan wrote in a post on Facebook.