Taliban new diktat excludes girls from secondary school

Kabul, Sept. 18: Girls were excluded from returning to secondary school in Afghanistan on Saturday, after the country’s new Taliban rulers ordered only boys and male teachers back to the classroom.

The hardline Islamist group ousted the USbacked government last month, promising a softer brand of rule than their repressive reign in the 1990s, when women were mostly banned from education and work.

But the diktat from the education ministry was the latest move from the new government to threaten women’s rights.

“All male teachers and students should attend their educational institutions,” a statement said ahead of classes resuming Saturday.

The statement, issued late Friday, made no mention of women teachers or girl pupils.

Secondary schools, with students typically between the ages of 13 and 18, are often segregated by sex in Afghanistan.