From secret bouquets to delayed gifts, Afghans find ways to celebrate love
All around the world, February 14 is celebrated as the festival of love. But in Afghanistan, it has become a...
Our work
Digging for development: How Hazara women are helping to build a road for their community
Every winter, they risk being cut off by deep snow and unable to access the city for crucial medical services,...
“With books and imagination”: The young Afghan women finding consolation in literature
Four young women sit together, waiting for the phone to ring. When the call finally comes through, their friend’s voice...
How the Taliban’s new criminal code penalises women
A husband who beats his wife severely could get off with just a 15-day sentence, while a woman who leaves...
‘We feel like strangers’: An exiled Afghan journalist returns to her homeland
I managed to dash in and hide my laptop under my chador before he stepped into the courtyard, with the...
Taliban detain Afghan woman over secret taekwondo training
A young Afghan woman has been arrested by the Taliban’s morality police while secretly training girls in taekwondo.
Taliban arrest female journalist in northern Afghanistan
A female journalist has been detained by Taliban intelligence forces in the northern Afghan province of Kunduz, sources close to...
How the closure of the Pakistan border is hitting ordinary Afghans
When the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan closed amid escalating tensions between the two neighbours, Somaya Nadari’s mother lost access...
Afghanistan’s maternal health services are collapsing. Here’s how one rural province is being affected
Ziba Balkhi When Medina’s sister went into labour in November, her family took her to the main provincial hospital in...
“I Felt Suffocated for Hours”: An Artistic Protest Against the Taliban’s Mandatory Hijab
Appearing on stage at the opening of his exhibition wearing a burqa, he declared: “Wherever a woman’s body is controlled,...
Address: 1 The Sanctuary, London SW1P 3JT