Academic groups and women’s rights organizations have condemned the Taliban’s decree to remove nearly 700 books from Afghanistan’s universities.
On Sunday, September 28, 2025, Word News University reported that these books—more than one-fifth of which were authored by women—have been eliminated from university curricula, and instruction in 18 academic fields has also been halted.
According to the report, the Taliban’s Ministry of Higher Education labeled the works as “contrary to Sharia” and “anti-Taliban,” ordering that 679 titles be excluded from the curriculum.
Among these, 140 books were authored by women, while several others were published by Iranian writers and publishers.
The banned books include works on human rights, democracy, women’s studies, women’s sociology, statistics, photography theory, and conflict management in business.
These measures have sparked widespread reactions and heightened concerns about the growing restrictions on academic freedom and women’s rights in Afghanistan.
You can read the Persian version of this news here:
گروههای دانشگاهی حذف نزدیک به ۷۰۰ کتاب آموزشی توسط طالبان را محکوم کردند
