Afghanistan: Clerics call on Taliban to reopen girls' schools, says no legal justification for banning girls

Kabul [Afghanistan], April 8 (ANI): Religious scholars once again called on the Taliban to reopen all girls' schools in Afghanistan's capital Kabul and said there was no legal justification for banning girls above sixth grade from going to school.
Scholars made these remarks at a conference under the name of "National Dialogue of Afghan Scholars", according to TOLOnews.
"In light of the guidance of the holy religion of Islam, find a suitable way to solve the crisis in the country, especially to provide education for girls above the sixth grade and to provide employment for women," said Abdul Sattar Hayat, a member of the Ulema Movement of Afghanistan.
"The duty and responsibility of the Islamic system toward the sisters (girls) are to ensure their security, and the second step is to facilitate the field of work and education for them," TOLOnews quoted Farzana Obaidi, a teacher of a Madrasa (Religious school).
Issuing a resolution, clerics ask the Islamic Emirate to find a way for girls and women in the country to lead a normal life.
Girls' schools were scheduled to reopen across Afghanistan after months of closure, but the Taliban announced that secondary schools and high schools for girls would remain closed until further notice. This decision was met with strong domestic and international reactions.
The Taliban regime which took over Kabul in August last year has curtailed women's rights and freedoms, with women largely excluded from the workforce due to the economic crisis and restrictions.
Earlier, dozens of female students in Afghanistan's capital city of Kabul took to the streets demanding the Taliban regime withdraw its decision to ban girls from attending school above the sixth grade.
Chanting the slogans of "education is our absolute right," the protestors called for the reopening of schools for girls in grades 7-12 across Afghanistan, Tolo News reported.
According to HRW, women and girls are blocked from accessing health care as well. Reports suggest that women and girls facing violence have no escape route. Allowing girls into schools and other educational institutes has been one of the main demands of the international community. The majority of countries have refused to formally recognize the Taliban amid worries over their treatment of girls and women and other human rights issues. (ANI)