MIDDLE EAST EYE
Members of the Taliban government barred 100 female Afghan students who were given a scholarship to study at the University of Dubai from boarding their flight to the UAE on Wednesday morning.
“I am unable to express the disappointment I feel now, as the Afghan female students, whom I had provided an educational scholarship in collaboration with the @uniofdubai presented by Dr Eesa Al Bastaki [the university’s president], were unfortunately unable to reach #DubaiAirport this morning to continue their studies due to Taliban’s interference,” Khalaf Ahmad al-Habtoor, the founding chairman of Al Habtoor Group, who sponsored the students, posted to X (formerly known as Twitter) on Wednesday.
In a video statement posted to X, al-Habtoor said he had been “eagerly anticipating” the student’s arrival.
One of the students featured in al-Habtoor’s video message said in a voice note posted on X: “We are right now in the airport, but unfortunately the government don’t allow us to go to Dubai, they don’t allow those who don’t have a maharram (male chaperone).
“When [the Taliban] see the student visa and the student ticket, they don’t allow us,” the student continued. “I don’t know what to do. Please help us. We are so concerned about this matter.”
‘I don’t know what to do. Please help us. We are so concerned about this matter’
– female Afghan student
Al-Habtoor, who is a prominent businessman in Dubai, said “unceasing efforts” were made by a collective group – Dubai University, the UAE’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, police, and immigration services – to ensure flights, healthcare, accommodation, transport, security, and education, were fully arranged for the students.
“Our aspirations were crushed,” he said in the video.
This is not the first time the Taliban have prevented female Afghan students from flying out of the country. In August last year, around 62 university students were prevented from boarding a flight to Qatar, simply because they were not travelling with male guardians.
