Nazeela Elmi نازیلا علمی

I’m happy to share that my research note, “Who Gets to Know and Be Known? Feminist Reflections on Knowledge Production from the Margins of Afghanistan,” has been published in the International Quarterly for Asian Studies. hasp.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/journals/iqas/…

Protests Peak Among Afghanistan’s Turks Over Humiliation by Taliban Higher Education Minister Following the humiliation of Kabul University students by Taliban Minister of Higher Education Neda Mohammad Nadeem over wearing a “red hat”—known as the “Sar-e-Puli hat”—a number of Afghanistan’s Turks have reacted by wearing the same hat, describing the minister’s actions as an insult to their identity and culture. The incident occurred yesterday when a group of Uzbek studies students at Kabul University were collecting trash on campus and were insulted and humiliated by Nadeem for wearing the “red hat.” Earlier, the Taliban’s Ministry of Higher Education had ordered students to wear either a cap or a turban. #aamajnews

An excellent and poignant read by our longstanding ally @yankeebean

On this #IWD2026, learn about the reality of gender apartheid in Afghanistan. Stand in solidarity, and tweet using #EndGenderApartheidInAfghanistan!

@roqia1382 Please click on the Pdf on the page😊

@noonaleph Need the full article. I only get the abstract. Can somebody pls copy and paste it into my inbox?

I’m happy to share that my research note, “Who Gets to Know and Be Known? Feminist Reflections on Knowledge Production from the Margins of Afghanistan,” has been published in the International Quarterly for Asian Studies. hasp.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/journals/iqas/…

@natiqmalikzada Thank you for reading and sharing Natiq jan!

Human rights work in Afghanistan cannot be truly fair or complete unless it includes the voices, histories, and knowledge of women from marginalised communities like #Uzbek women. Tokenistic use of intersectionality in human rights discussions on Afghanistan is real, and it must be stopped. A must read for all human rights practitioners in Afghanistan 👇

This research reflects on the intersectional disadvantage #Uzbek women in Afghanistan face, shaped by gender, linguistic marginalization, geographic distance & ethnic identity. The compound vulnerabilities affecting them & their inclusion in knowledge production. Excellent piece!

@DalilSuraya Thank you Dr. Dalil! This means a lot especially coming from you.

@natiqmalikzada Thank you Natiq jan!

@noonaleph Congrats, Nazila jan. Looking forward to reading it

@NazifaJalali2 @SR_Afghanistan So wonderful to see you there!

My full statement at the press conference, with @SR_Afghanistan @suryadalil , Please allow me to begin with the key findings of our research on women’s health conducted across 20 provinces between 2025 and 2026, based on interviews with women beneficiaries and female health workers. Our findings show severe structural barriers to healthcare. In many rural districts, there is an acute shortage of clinics, medicines, and female staff. Pregnant women are often unable to reach facilities in time due to poor roads, lack of transport, and mahram restrictions that delay or prevent treatment. In remote mountainous areas, women are still carried for hours on stretchers or animals, and emergency referrals frequently fail. In practice, access to healthcare is determined more by mobility and control than by medical need. We also documented a profound mental health crisis. Eighty-eight out of one hundred women interviewed reported serious psychological distress, including depression, anxiety, chronic fear, and loss of hope. Girls and young women are the most affected, driven by movement restrictions, loss of education and work, constant surveillance, and the near absence of mental health services. Female health workers themselves face systematic barriers. Doctors, nurses, and midwives reported harassment, intimidation, mandatory mahram requirements in some provinces, and strict dress enforcement. These restrictions have already led to clinic closures and dismissals, directly reducing women’s access to care. Beyond health, the broader situation remains deeply concerning. Since bans on women’s work and education, economic dependence has increased, contributing to rising domestic violence, forced marriages, and child marriages. Within the penal framework imposed by the Taliban, these abuses persist without effective protection or accountability. What we are witnessing is not a series of isolated incidents but the result of structural policies that are systematically excluding women from public life. We therefore call on the UN Human Rights Council to urgently operationalize the evidence-collection mechanism with adequate resources, ensure continued independent monitoring, and refrain from any normalization or recognition of the Taliban unless there is full compliance with international human rights standards, particularly the rights of women and girls.

Following my recent visit to Pakistan, I am now preparing for the 61st session of the HRC in Geneva. On 26 Feb I will present my report on the right to health for women and girls in #Afghanistan & will deliver an oral statement covering concerning recent human rights developments

🟣 Taliban’ın sert ceza düzenlemelerinden sonra Afgan kadınları haykırıyor: ‘Ev hapsindeyiz, bu yavaş bir ölüm’ 💬 #EŞiKGönüllüsü ve Afganistan Çalışma Grubu üyesi Nazeela Elmi (@noonaleph); "Taliban’ın uluslararası hukuk önünde hesap vermesi gerektiğine inanıyorum. Bunun için Uluslararası Ceza Mahkemesi ve Uluslararası Adalet Divanı gibi mevcut mekanizmaların etkin biçimde işletilmesi gerekiyor." 💬 Richard Bennet (@SR_Afghanistan) BM İnsan Hakları Afganistan Özel Raportörü; "Kadınlar ve kız çocuklarının kamusal yaşamdan sistematik biçimde dışlanması; hareket özgürlüğü, çalışma, eğitim ve sağlık hizmetlerine erişimlerine getirilen kısıtlamalarla birlikte ele alındığında bu uygulamalar insanlığa karşı suç teşkil edecek kadar ağırdır." ✒️ Gizem Coşkunarda hurriyet.com.tr/kelebek/hurriy… @Hurriyet @gizemcoskunarda

Join us for the launch of Femena’s report on #women’s activism & #resistance under #Taliban repression. Featuring critical voices of #Afghan #WHRDs: ⁦@noonaleph⁩ ⁦@ZubaidaAKBR⁩ @NazifaJalali2⁩ ⁦@YaldaRoyan⁩ ⁦@parwananijrabi⁩ 🗓 Feb 19 | 9am ET / 3pm CET

A truly well-deserved appointment and a powerful milestone for Afghan women’s leadership and representation. Congratulations! @AdelaRaz un.org/en/desa/expert…

Our client, Afghan human rights advocate Ali Faqirzada, was detained by ICE moments after being found to have a strong asylum claim. Read how Ali's community has rallied for his release. Join our campaign to to #FreeAli: bit.ly/FreeAliF timesunion.com/hudsonvalley/n…

“The choice before the world is clear to normalize the misogynist and oppressive vision of the Taliban or to stand with the vision of Afghan women for a democratic and rights respecting future for Afghanistan.” ⁦@ShaharzadAkbar⁩ Watch👇🏻 youtube.com/live/oqZnu0mJa…

I thank the HRC for renewing the Special Rapporteur mandate and look forward to continuing to fulfill my responsibilities including by monitoring and reporting on the human rights situation in #Afghanistan and working with all stakeholders to find ways to improve it.

@uzb_travel Thank you for featuring our book!

On #InternationalTranslationDay we thank the many translators bringing Uzbekistan's rich literary heritage to international audiences. Have you read any Uzbek books in your language? Find some here: shorturl.at/urD64

Very alarming: The Taliban have cut off internet access across Afghanistan. Women I interviewed months ago who relied on online education had already feared this day. I conveyed their testimonies in my #UNGA80🇺🇳 remarks.