Four women activists in Afghanistan have been released by the country’s “de facto authorities” after going missing weeks ago, the United Nations has said. Since storming back to power in August, the Taliban have cracked down on dissent by forcefully dispersing women’s rallies, detaining critics and often beating local journalists covering unsanctioned protests. Tamana Zaryabi Paryani, Parwana Ibrahimkhel, Zahra Mohammadi, and Mursal Ayar went missing after participating in an anti-Taliban rally, but Afghanistan’s new rulers, whose government is still not recognized by any country, had consistently denied detaining them.
“After a long period of uncertainty about their whereabouts and safety, the four ‘disappeared’ Afghan women activists, as well as their relatives who also went missing, have all been released by the de facto authorities,” the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan said on Twitter on Sunday. Ibrahimkhel went missing along with Paryani on January 19, days after taking part in a rally in Kabul calling for women’s rights to work and education. Weeks later, Mohammadi and Ayar went missing. Shortly before she disappeared, footage of Paryani was shared on social media showing her in distress, warning of Taliban fighters at her door. Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid had told AFP in an interview recently that the authorities had the right “to arrest and detain dissidents or those who break the law” after the government banned unsanctioned protests soon after coming to power. The Taliban have promised a softer version of the harsh rule that characterized their first stint in power from 1996, but provincial authorities have imposed several restrictions on women and have issued regular guidelines on how they should live.
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