In Afghanistan, the new Taliban government has said women will be permitted to study at universities but that schools would be segregated, a dress code would be imposed, and school curricula would be reviewed. Women and girls had been banned from schools and colleges under Taliban rule between 1996 and 2001. A recent U.N. report found the number of girls in elementary schools had increased from almost none to 2.5 million in the years after the Taliban lost power.
The U.N. is reporting at least four people were killed during recent protests against Taliban rule and that the Taliban had conducted house-to-house searches for people who participated in the protests. The U.N. human rights agency also warned of increasing intimidation and violence against journalists.