Background
The Taliban’s assault on human rights and fundamental freedoms, neglect of a metastasizing humanitarian crisis, and systematic exclusion of women and girls from Afghan society are making life increasingly unbearable for Afghans. The Taliban have removed women from all aspects of public life–from government and businesses to classrooms and universities–through hundreds of draconian edicts. Afghan women face numerous threats, including forced marriages, imprisonment, physical attacks, extrajudicial killings, and transnational repression. Every day, one or two women commit suicide in what has been described as an “epidemic of suicidal thoughts.”
The repression and instability that the Taliban have created within Afghanistan threaten regional and international security, as well. Violent extremist rhetoric and ideology are flourishing today, terrorist groups—like the Islamic State and Al Qaeda—are active, and the country faces a looming wave of radicalization and recruitment. Diminishing support from the international community and the United States, in particular, exacerbates growing risks.
Though it faces dire conditions, Afghanistan is not a “lost cause.” On May 1, 2025, the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security hosted over 30 Afghan women leaders and experts who developed concrete recommendations for steps that can be taken now to improve conditions inside the country, especially for women and girls. The leaders, who represent a range of technical sectors, ethnic groups, and regional backgrounds, assessed the country’s challenges and identified the following recommendations for the United States and the broader international community.
Key Calls to Action for the United States:
- In engaging with the Taliban, oppose any decisions that would legitimize or normalize the Taliban’s repressive actions.
The United States has led the international community for decades in condemning the crimes of the Taliban. As the Taliban increase their attacks on the rights of Afghans, the United States must continue to resist the normalization of these actions. There is nothing normal about repression. The United States should promote accountability, avoid any actions that could legitimize the de facto authorities, and urge America’s allies to do the same. - Restore and continue humanitarian assistance.
The United States’ provision of humanitarian assistance has touched millions of lives and remains critical to Afghanistan’s stability. The U.S. should continue to provide funds for life-saving humanitarian assistance, including food and healthcare, to support the 23.7 million Afghans in need, as well as continue to fund vital programs that support the rights of Afghan women and girls. The U. S. must also ensure that Congressionally-approved funds are released to support Afghans, implemented through independent international NGOs and UN agencies, and audited to ensure transparency. - Continue and expand efforts to protect women and girls who were forced to flee Afghanistan.
Americans have played a vital role in helping thousands of women and girls, whose lives were at risk because of their work to promote human rights and democratic governance, escape Afghanistan when the country came under Taliban control. These women and girls were supported through multiple immigration tools, each of which plays a different role in allowing these allies to reside and work in America and avoid being forced to return to the horrific situation in Afghanistan. The United States recently announced the termination of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Afghans on the grounds that Afghanistan is now stable. The decision and impending deportations place Afghans who risked their lives to work side-by-side with Americans in grave danger and expose them to severe punishment.
The administration must halt impending deportations, reinstate and expand Temporary Protected Status for our Afghan allies, expedite vetting, and streamline processes to support over 15,000 Afghans awaiting resettlement, while also increasing diplomatic efforts to ensure Pakistan does not forcibly return refugees, as it is threatening to do. Congress should pass legislation to increase Special Immigrant Visas (SIVs) and (P-2) designations for at-risk Afghans (e.g., U.S. allies, women activists) and reintroduce and adopt the Afghan Adjustment Act. - Provide educational opportunities for Afghan women and girls.
The United States’ support over the past two decades to education for women and girls in Afghanistan has enabled significant gains. To meet today’s urgent needs, Congress must continue its support scholarships for Afghan women to study at the American University of Afghanistan and in third countries like Pakistan, Qatar, and Uzbekistan, where current programs are due to be terminated. These programs have helped thousands of Afghans gain access to education at a time when the Taliban are banning access to education inside Afghanistan. - Support full compliance with the Women, Peace, and Security Act across relevant U.S. agencies.
President Trump signed the bipartisan Women, Peace and Security (WPS) Act in 2017 to promote the meaningful participation of women at all levels of decision-making and peace processes, including women and girls in Afghanistan. Currently, the U.S. Government’s WPS implementation is under threat. Congress should use all tools available to ensure full compliance with the law, including in policies and programs affecting Afghanistan.
Key Calls to Action for the International Community:
- Adopt a coordinated approach towards engaging with the Taliban that does not normalize the regime and its human rights abuses.
The international community has yet to adopt a coordinated approach on Afghanistan. Today, we see the creeping normalization of the Taliban by individual states. Several countries have quietly reopened embassies and consulates inside the country. Consultation processes with the Taliban prioritize technical engagements between the Taliban and the international community and tend to disregard inclusive, substantive exchanges focused on governance and human rights. The United Nations must lead its members in developing and implementing a coordinated approach towards engagement and work to prioritize human rights and accountability. The UN and Member States should implement recommendations made in the United Nations Security Council (UNSC)-mandated independent assessment on Afghanistan, as well as those delivered during consultations with Afghan women and civil society organizations. - Facilitate women’s participation in multilateral political processes related to Afghanistan.
Ongoing international processes to address the situation in Afghanistan, like the UN-led Doha Process, have included the Taliban while routinely excluding Afghan women. The international community must facilitate the robust participation of women of diverse ethnic and regional backgrounds in all discussions and processes related to Afghanistan. The United Nations must ensure women’s participation, not only as a moral obligation based on the United Nations Charter but also as a strategic imperative. Women’s participation in peace and political processes is directly correlated with more effective outcomes for stability, good governance, economic progress, and sustainable peace. - Ensure that UNAMA’s engagement is principled, inclusive, and advances the rights of the Afghan people.
The UNSC must exercise additional oversight over the United Nations Assistance Mission (UNAMA) in Afghanistan, which has been widely criticized by Afghan women and girls for not addressing the Taliban’s systematic oppression. The UNSC must ensure that UNAMA’s engagement and activities inside and outside of Afghanistan adhere to the strategy outlined in the UNSC-mandated independent assessment. The UNSC and UNAMA must adopt a clear framework that enables Afghans to engage with each other and chart an inclusive, stable future within their diverse population. - Pursue accountability under international law.
The international community must promote accountability for the Taliban’s abuses and human rights violations by exploring mechanisms for legal accountability, including in international courts, through universal jurisdiction, through UN treaty bodies, and through documentation at evidentiary quality for future legal proceedings. States should also explore new pathways to accountability, including by codifying gender apartheid in the United Nations Sixth Committee’s Crimes Against Humanity Treaty when it is negotiated in January 2026. - Support community-based education initiatives.
Education in Afghanistan is in a state of emergency. The Taliban banned secondary education for women and girls and terminated midwifery and nursing education. Their madrassas are no substitute for these critical types of formal education. Afghan students, particularly women and girls, need interim emergency education initiatives that can function below the Taliban’s radar while Afghans and their international allies continue to advocate for a return to formal education.
The international community—as individual States and a collective—should identify, fund, and resource initiatives like community-based education programs that are not subject to official restrictions, while exploring models of interim education that were successful in the past. The international community must also push the Taliban to restore nursing and midwifery training, as infant and maternal mortality continue to rise.
