Afghan women’s-rights activists have pressed the United Nations to step up independent monitoring and documentation of abuses under Taliban rule, citing a sharp rise in violence and repression.

During a meeting in Ankara on Sunday, 29 June, the activists told UN Special Rapporteur Richard Bennett that women and girls in Afghanistan face systematic violations, including domestic violence, forced and child marriages, harassment, arbitrary arrest and torture. They said human-rights defenders, civil-society activists and journalists are also being targeted.

The group, which campaigns for human and women’s rights from outside Afghanistan, voiced additional concern over the recent surge in deportations of Afghan migrants from Iran, Pakistan and Türkiye, warning that returning women are at particular risk.

Bennett, the UN special rapporteur on the human-rights situation in Afghanistan, has previously reported that some impoverished families are marrying off daughters to avoid forced unions with Taliban members. He has said Afghan women now endure “multiple layers” of gender and ethnic discrimination.

The activists urged Bennett to push for stronger international mechanisms to document abuses and hold perpetrators to account, arguing that without sustained scrutiny, violations will continue with impunity.