Updated

Richard Bennett, the UN special rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan, told Voice of America on Tuesday that the human rights situation in the country is gradually getting worse, for women and girls and for the whole community. Chatham House, a London-based international affairs institute, awarded its annual prize to the women of Afghanistan on Monday for their courage, resilience and determination in the face of systematic gender persecution. Bennett said the Taliban have imposed more than 200 decrees and edicts primarily restricting human rights, more than 100 of them targeting women and girls, and that pressure is also reported on freedom of expression, the media, civic space and religious, ethnic and linguistic minorities. Under Taliban rule, women are barred from working with government and non-government organisations, attending secondary school and university, and travelling long distances without a close male relative, according to Voice of America. Bennett said the Taliban cannot deny the violations, citing the edicts themselves and evidence gathered from Afghans inside the country. He said international pressure has not yet produced visible change but may be having private effects, and that he remains willing to continue dialogue with the Taliban. Bennett has been denied entry to Afghanistan since 2024, and a Taliban spokesperson accused him of lacking professionalism and of producing reports based on prejudice and anecdotes.