A high-ranking Taliban official, who the reports said had so vehemently opposed the ban on girl’s education in Afghanistan, fled the country after an order was reportedly issued for his arrest.
During a graduation ceremony held in Khost province on January 20, deputy foreign minister of the Taliban, Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, denounced the ban on female education. He said, speaking in his graduation address, “There is no excuse for this not now and not in the future.”. We are doing injustice to 20 million people. He also referred to some earlier Islamic practices by referring to the role played by the scholars of the ladies in the lifetime of Prophet Muhammad. Following his speech, it was claimed that Taliban’s head Hibatullah Akhundzada had issued an arrest warrant for Stanikzai and travel restriction had been imposed. It is, however claimed that the minister could easily sidestep all the restrictions and escaped to United Arab Emirates.
While Stanikzai later confirmed his departure to local media, he claimed that his travel to Dubai is for medical purposes. The Taliban have not made an official statement regarding his sudden exit.
Since taking back the reins in 2021, the Taliban have dramatically restricted women’s rights and banned them from education, work, and public life. The attacks have universally sparked outrage, with the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court asking for arrest warrants for the leaders of the Taliban, referring to their treatment of women as a crime against humanity.