Afghan protesters in Kabul demand Taliban men give role for women in government

A group of women have gathered outside the presidential palace in Kabul to urge the Taliban to stick to their words about upholding their rights and include women in the government.

Some of the protesters held up printed pages calling for “a heroic Cabinet with the presence of women”.

The protesters chanted slogans asserting human rights and saying they did not want to return to the past.

A document circulated by protesters demanded that Afghan women are granted full rights to education, social and political contributions to the country’s future, and general freedoms including free speech.

The Taliban have claimed they will respect the rights of women, saying they will be free to learn and work, but many doubt they will stick to their words.

During their first time in power in the 1990s they used an ultra-conservative interpretation of Sharia law to effectively remove all rights from women.

They were banned from working, getting an education or leaving the house without a male escort.

One woman who managed to flee Afghanistan during the evacuations told ITV News her sister has not been allowed to return to secondary school and another sister had been banned from returning to university.

During the 20 years of the western-backed government women in Afghanistan enjoyed freedoms they had never experienced before, and many are now reluctant to see them taken away from them now that the Taliban have returned to power.