Tribal Elders Work to Reopen Schools in Southern Afghanistan

Over 20 schools have reopened in the southern Afghanistan province of Helmand after being demolished by the Taliban insurgency, IRIN, a UN newswire, reported last week. Helmand tribal elders worked with the Afghan government to open 14 mixed gender temporary schools and called upon the government and international organizations to help rebuild permanent structures and stock the schools with furniture and supplies.

Over 300 schools have closed because of attack or threat of attack since the Taliban began its insurgency. Ahmed Rashid, a well known author and expert on the Taliban, wrote in the Washington Post that "...every single day somewhere in Afghanistan a girls' school is burned down or a female teacher killed by the Taliban." IRIN reports that over 200,000 girls and boys cannot get an education due to the lack of schools.

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Media Resources: IRINnews 11/7/06; Feminist Daily Newswire 7/12/06

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