A pregnant woman, from Arzlek village in Qaisar district of northern Faryab province, committed suicide by ingesting rat poison on Friday.
Identified as Lailema, the 32-year-old mother of three, was seven months pregnant.
A source who knew her said Lailema was the second wife of her husband and that domestic abuse and violence were the causes of her ending her life.
A Taliban official in the are also confirmed that the cause of Lailema’s suicide was domestic violence.
Afghanistan has seen a sharp rise in suicide rates since the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021. Women and girls are particularly at risk, and poverty, unemployment, domestic violence, and depression are believed to be the key contributors to these incidents.
A recent BBC report states that women in Afghanistan face “pandemic of suicidal thoughts”.
