As Taliban tightens grip, secret schools for girls become more dangerous to run

Zainab was working as a math teacher and going to medical school until Aug. 15, 2021 — the day that Kabul fell into the hands of the Taliban after the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan.

Suddenly, Zainab’s job and studies stopped — her full name isn’t being used to protect her safety. Among the Taliban’s most significant restrictions was the ban on education for girls beyond the sixth grade. 

But what she most remembers from that day, Zainab said, was the impact on her younger sister, Fatima, who was still in high school. (None of the full names of the Afghan women cited in this story are being used for security reasons.) 

“I will never forget that phone call,” Zainab recalled. “Even when our mother died, Fatima didn’t cry like she did on that day. She was hysterical, saying, ‘Sister, the schools are closed.’” 

Zainab set out on a mission to defy the Taliban’s oppressive policies. By October of 2021, she had opened a high school for girls in a small basement off a main street in Kabul. She continues to secretly educate girls in defiance of the law despite mounting risks and obstacles. 

In the beginning, Zainab said, she found a loophole in the Taliban’s regulations that allowed her to obtain permission to run the school. Despite the danger, she was determined to provide a haven for girls eager to continue their education.

At first, the school operated discreetly. The shopkeepers in the area, she said, noticed the activity around the basement but chose not to say anything. Word of the secret school spread quickly, and within the first month, over 500 girls had enrolled. 

“When they came to our school, you could see the fear and worry in their faces, especially the mothers,” Zainab said.

The school was modest — there weren’t enough desks, and the classrooms were dimly lit, with only natural light from the windows. Yet, the girls were eager to learn, even if it meant sitting on the cold, cement floor. 

“Just allow us to come,” they pleaded, Zainab said.

The girls attended classes in subjects like Persian literature, English and math — subjects that were strictly forbidden under the Taliban’s regime. But their joy was always tinged with fear, the constant worry that the Taliban would discover their secret.

Khalida, who was 25 years old when she attended the school — she had to fight for years to get her parents’ consent to go to school — remembered the day it fell apart. 

“I cannot forget, we were in English class. Dr. Zainab came to our class and said, ‘Girls, be calm.’ Then, the Taliban came into the school and told us to read the Quran and asked why we were reading in English.”  

Some of the girls broke down in tears — they were scared of being arrested by the Taliban, and they knew the school would be shut down. 

Zainab’s school was closed in March of 2022, just five months after it opened. 

Richard Bennett, a special rapporteur for the UN who worked in Afghanistan on and off for 20 years, said that when other international crises took center stage, the Taliban started to systematically roll back human rights gains. 

“What we’ve seen over, now, 2 1/2 years, is a step-by-step continuing restriction of human rights, especially rights of women and girls.”

Bennett said it started with stricter enforcement of clothing rules. Then, the Taliban required women to be accompanied by male guardians in public, and then came the ban on public schooling after sixth grade for girls and women.

In December of 2022, the Taliban shut down religious schools for girls. 

But Zainab was not one to give up easily. In October of 2022, after the Taliban replaced a minister of higher education who had been somewhat supportive of girls’ education, Zainab made the brave decision to reopen her school. 

“I am still standing, and I will continue to stand,” Zainab declared in a video she recorded at the school’s entrance, defying the Taliban’s orders. “I will be with the women of my country until the very end.”

Zainab said she has thought about what could happen if she keeps her school open. The morning after the edict, she dropped her two girls off with a family member to look after them if she got arrested or worse.

“I have said goodbye several times.”  

Zainab said that her in-laws have threatened to cut off contact with her over her decision. 

The risks Zainab took did not go unnoticed. Late last year, she was recognized by the international community and awarded a prestigious human rights award from the Axel Springer Freedom Foundation.

Despite the accolades, Zainab’s work remains largely a secret within Afghanistan, where the danger to her and her students persists.

“This is my duty. Especially as an Afghan woman who understands the pain and suffering of other Afghan women, who knows what problems they are facing,” Zainab said in her video.