Kabul, Afghanistan — Amid the devastation left by Afghanistan’s recent earthquake, women trapped under rubble and in desperate need of medical attention are being forced to wait , sometimes until it is too late. The reason is not a lack of compassion or courage among rescuers, but the Taliban’s strict enforcement of gender rules that forbid men from touching women who are not their relatives.
For many survivors, these restrictions have turned an already catastrophic disaster into a silent, preventable tragedy.
Rescue Efforts Blocked by Gender Rules
In the immediate aftermath of the quake, rescuers rushed to collapsed homes and buildings, digging through the wreckage for survivors. But when it came to women, many rescuers hesitated. Taliban-enforced rules against “skin contact” with unrelated women left male rescuers powerless, even as they could hear cries beneath the rubble.
One volunteer described the anguish: “It felt like women were invisible. We saved men and children first. The women were left waiting.”
In rural areas, where trained female rescuers are almost nonexistent, delays stretched into days. In some cases, women died before anyone could reach them. Witnesses reported that when deceased women were finally removed, their bodies were dragged out by clothing to avoid physical contact.
Gender Apartheid Deepens the Crisis
This deadly barrier is not limited to the rubble. Afghanistan already faces a critical shortage of female doctors, nurses, and aid workers — a crisis rooted in the Taliban’s sweeping restrictions on women’s education and employment.
The ban on women studying medicine has left hospitals without female staff, while rules requiring women to travel only with a male guardian keep many from even reaching clinics or aid distribution centers.
The result is a form of gender apartheid in disaster response: women are present, but systematically denied the chance to be seen, helped, or healed.
International Outcry
Humanitarian groups and international leaders have condemned the situation. The United Nations has warned that women and girls are once again bearing the heaviest burden of crisis.
“Women and girls will again bear the brunt of this disaster,” said Susan Ferguson, UN Women’s Special Representative for Afghanistan. “We must ensure their needs are at the heart of the response.”
Aid groups stress that this tragedy is a stark reminder: gender discrimination is not only a social injustice—it is a life-threatening obstacle when disaster strikes.
A Humanitarian Call
For Afghan women, survival is being determined not only by the strength of rescuers’ hands, but by the walls of ideology. Their suffering is compounded by rules that turn empathy into a crime and delay into a death sentence.
As the world looks on, international agencies argue that aid to Afghanistan must not only deliver food, tents, and medicine, but also challenge the barriers that render half the population invisible in times of greatest need.
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