Afghanistan Islamic schools show grip that Taliban has on life of girls

When the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in August 2021, Nahid, 24, was midway through an economics degree. She had hoped to work in a university after she graduated.

- Sara Ibrahim Hadis Habibyar

Instead, Nahid now spends her mornings at a religious school in the basement of a mosque in the western city of Herat, sitting on the floor and reciting scripture with 50 other women and girls, all dressed in black from head to toe.

She knows the Taliban is "trying to change women's minds", but says she attends the class because, "it's the only way I can leave my home and fight depression".

The monthly incentive of 1,000 afghanis (£11) also helps.

A Guardian and Zan Times investigation across eight of Afghanistan's 34 provinces has found the Taliban's efforts to make religious studies the only education available to women and girls.

The regime has been building a network of religious schools since excluding women and girls from secondary school and further education four years ago.

There were more than 21,000 Islamic religious schools, or madrasas, across Afghanistan by the end of last year, according to reports. Between September 2024 and February 2025, the Taliban built or laid foundations for nearly 50 more across 11 provinces.