Taliban bans female university students from attending entrance exam

New Delhi: Months after forcing them out of universities, Afghanistan’s Taliban regime banned female students from appearing for university entrance exam.

A notice issued by the education ministry barred girls from applying for exams until further information, TOLO news reported.

The letter from the education ministry, addressed to institutions in the nation’s northern provinces, comes ahead of exams in places including Kabul from the end of February.

The letter said institutions failing to observe the rules would face legal action. In December, authorities told universities not to allow female students "until further notice".

Reports now say that most girls' highschools in the nation have been closed by authorities.

Despite initially promising more moderate rule, Taliban banned women from colleges and universities, sparking protests.

However, Taliban’s edict went extremely harsh resulting in banning girls from pursuing education after class 6.

More important, women are restricted from most employments, gym, and park, alongside directing them to wear head-to-toe clothing in public, according to India Today.

Even women working with local and foreign non-governmental organisations (NGO) have been banned.

Just as Taliban began increasingly target women, the UN experts reportedly said: “flagrant violations of their human rights and freedoms that are already the most draconian globally and may amount to gender persecution -- a crime against humanity".