KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – A 25-year-old woman ended her life by hanging in northern Faryab province, Afghanistan, amid a recent surge in suicide rates among women and girls in the country.
The young woman, identified by local sources as Ay Kamal, committed suicide by hanging at her home in Garziwan district of Faryab on Monday, December 16.
The exact cause of this tragic incident remains unknown; however, sources said it may have occurred due to family issues.
The local Taliban authorities have not yet commented on the incident.
This incident follows a similar case in Takhar province, where 17-year-old Somaya ended her life by ingesting rat poison on Monday. According to local sources, she committed suicide to escape a forced marriage arranged by her family.
These are the latest suicide cases in Afghanistan. Since the Taliban’s takeover three years ago, the country has seen a significant rise in the suicide rate, particularly among young women. This increase is attributed to the Taliban’s strict restrictions on women and girls, forced marriages, domestic violence, mental health challenges, worsening humanitarian conditions, and poverty.
Life under Taliban rule has become extremely difficult, particularly for women and girls, who have been stripped of basic rights, including education, employment, access to public spaces, travel, and other freedoms.
In 2023 alone, Etilaat Roz documented at least 103 cases of women dying by suicide across 28 provinces, the majority of the victims being under the age of 20. The actual numbers may be even higher, as many incidents go unreported due to Taliban media restrictions and families’ preference to keep such cases secret.
