The world watches with heartbreak and horror as women disappear from the public sphere in Afghanistan. This happens as the Taliban impose increasingly stringent regulations over their education, employment, leisure and movement. They justify this as response to women not wearing hijab properly.
Other Muslim countries remonstrate amid worldwide outrage, with some leaders labelling such treatment of women as gender apartheid and even crimes against humanity. But two years on, the criticism appears to be of no avail.
Meanwhile, long-standing sanctions targeting Taliban individuals and enterprises have isolated and crippled the whole country, with nearly a third of its republic-era GDP having disappeared. Perversely, even humanitarian provision is severely impaired.
The UN has declared Afghanistan to be the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, with 28.3 million people requiring urgent help. But only 27 per cent of its $3.23 billion appeal for 2023 has been funded, with delivery compromised by complicated financial transfers and restrictions on women aid workers.
How do increasingly impoverished and hungry Afghans manage? Amazingly, despite the perils, some remain defiant. However admirable that is, their resilience only goes so far.
Many Afghans have left: over 5.6 million – a staggering 13 per cent of the population. Afghanistan is the third-largest source of refugees (after Syria and Ukraine). Other migrant categories add to an estimated 8 million Afghans scattered across more than 100 countries.
Afghans abroad are famously enterprising, wanting nothing more than to make safe, self-sufficient lives. But the life of an exile is no bed of roses. Those fleeing take mind-boggling risks only to be trapped in bureaucratic quagmires or suffer mundane knock-backs.
Taking chances in our callous world requires strength and means, and most forced Afghan migrants are men. Women are left behind – encumbered by children, family obligations, social traditions and plain coercion. Their impossible situation was highlighted when female students were prevented from taking up UAE university scholarships.
The women left behind are more likely to encounter violence than their sisters in other countries. According to UN data, eight in 10 Afghan women have been victims of sexual, physical, or psychological violence, with forced marriages and domestic violence most prominent.
The women left behind are more likely to encounter violence than their sisters in other countries
The outcome of Afghanistan’s trauma, and its outsized impact on women, is unbearably tragic. According to the World Health Organisation, suicides are globally twice more common among males than females. But Afghanistan has long been the only place in the world where the suicide rate for women is higher than for men – since even before the Taliban came to power. It is thought that up to 80 per cent of suicide attempts in the country are by women. It appears that the gender war on women has become internalised as a war by women on their own selves.
I recall that the most distressing part of my past work as a hospital doctor in Britain was admitting people attempting suicide. I logged around 300 heart-rending cases over six months, of which three died on my watch, while 25 were not rescued in time to be brought to hospital. That conforms with global figures that nine out of 10 suicide attempts do not end in death. They may be cries for help.
How many of those cries are heard in Afghanistan? We don’t know for certain, and not just because of the shattered country’s data systems. Suicide is prohibited in Islam – and other religions. Even in my own extended family in India, our elders feel ashamed to talk about the relative who killed herself some years ago.
Additional misconceptions and stigma put pressure on medics to avoid suicide death certification, and spare further distress to families. Also to consider are legal implications, for example, for insurance pay-outs, inheritances or even intrusive police investigations.
Thus, suicide is under-reported globally. Nevertheless, it shows a stable or slowly declining trend over the past two decades. But not so in Afghanistan, where recent hospital surveys suggest a grim uptick for women.
The testimony of self-harming survivors suggests why they are driven to take extreme measures. “Our lives are an empty shell. What is there to live for?” they assert. The driving of so many women into their homes by excluding them from public life should find resonance in everyone who was locked down for months during the Covid-19 pandemic. That led to a 25 per cent increase in anxiety and depression including suicidal ideation especially in young women, according to WHO.
That is not all. Female despair feeds on longstanding mental health vulnerabilities that precede the Taliban. Afghanistan has known little but conflict and disruption compounded by poverty and disaster over several decades. Researchers estimate that half the population have experienced some form of mental illness including post-traumatic stress.
Findings across countries in prolonged crises indicate the intergenerational transfer and magnification of population-wide trauma. An especially sinister effect is increased violence against women in domestic and community settings.
Mental illness is neglected worldwide. Even more so In Afghanistan, where the little aid it gets is driven by day-to-day physical survival needs. But people can’t live on bread alone.
The modest mental health services the country once had have withered away. And draconian access restrictions mean that mentally distressed females needing women counsellors can’t find them quickly. The pipeline of future women psychologists and psychiatrists is also empty.
This is a mental health crisis of unprecedented proportions, topped up by an epidemic of female self-harm. While advocating for changing the Taliban’s treatment of women remains essential, it is unlikely to bear fruit anytime soon. Neither is it sufficient to invest a small share of the humanitarian cake in repairing mental health services. This will always be too little and late.
Instead, a public health approach is essential through a mass programme of low-cost mental first aid. Like physical first aid that saves countless lives in wars and accidents, this is about community skills to handle psychological trauma through awareness of risk factors, alertness to warning signs, especially around self-harm, communicating with empathy and respect, and building non-judgemental solidarity networks that strengthen coping capacities.
Many countries offer mental health first aid services with techniques that rely on established science. They are also available online. Why not in Afghanistan?
Afghans will take their own time to find solutions to their many complex problems. But healthier minds – in women and men – are a pre-requisite for that and for constructing a society that works for all.
It is never too late for Afghanistan to embark on the long journey towards better mental health. And it could also save precious lives along the way.
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Bio
Favourite Emirati dish: I have so many because it has a lot of herbs and vegetables. Harees (oats with chicken) is one of them
Favourite place to go to: Dubai Mall because it has lots of sports shops.
Her motivation: My performance because I know that whatever I do, if I put the effort in, I’ll get results
During her free time: I like to drink coffee - a latte no sugar and no flavours. I do not like cold drinks
Pet peeve: That with every meal they give you a fries and Pepsi. That is so unhealthy
Advice to anyone who wants to be an ironman: Go for the goal. If you are consistent, you will get there. With the first one, it might not be what they want but they should start and just do it
INFO
What: DP World Tour Championship
When: November 21-24
Where: Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai
Tickets: www.ticketmaster.ae.
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Results
57kg quarter-finals
Zakaria Eljamari (UAE) beat Hamed Al Matari (YEM) by points 3-0.
60kg quarter-finals
Ibrahim Bilal (UAE) beat Hyan Aljmyah (SYR) RSC round 2.
63.5kg quarter-finals
Nouredine Samir (UAE) beat Shamlan A Othman (KUW) by points 3-0.
67kg quarter-finals
Mohammed Mardi (UAE) beat Ahmad Ondash (LBN) by points 2-1.
71kg quarter-finals
Ahmad Bahman (UAE) defeated Lalthasanga Lelhchhun (IND) by points 3-0.
Amine El Moatassime (UAE) beat Seyed Kaveh Safakhaneh (IRI) by points 3-0.
81kg quarter-finals
Ilyass Habibali (UAE) beat Ahmad Hilal (PLE) by points 3-0
Titanium Escrow profile
Started: December 2016
Founder: Ibrahim Kamalmaz
Based: UAE
Sector: Finance / legal
Size: 3 employees, pre-revenue
Stage: Early stage
Investors: Founder's friends and Family
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
The specs: 2017 Porsche 718 Cayman
Price, base / as tested Dh222,500 / Dh296,870
Engine 2.0L, flat four-cylinder
Transmission Seven-speed PDK
Power 300hp @ 6,500rpm
Torque 380hp @ 1,950rpm
Fuel economy, combined 6.9L / 100km
Famous left-handers
- Marie Curie
- Jimi Hendrix
- Leonardo Di Vinci
- David Bowie
- Paul McCartney
- Albert Einstein
- Jack the Ripper
- Barack Obama
- Helen Keller
- Joan of Arc
FORSPOKEN
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Final%20Fantasy%20XVI
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Street%20Fighter%206
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Baldur's%20Gate%203
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The%20Legend%20of%20Zelda%3A%20Tears%20of%20The%20Kingdom
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Assassin's%20Creed%20Mirage
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Starfield
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Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
The specs
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Transmission: seven-speed auto
Power: 420 bhp
Torque: 624Nm
Price: from Dh293,200
On sale: now
RESULT
Arsenal 2
Sokratis Papastathopoulos 45 4'
Eddie Ntkeiah 51'
Portsmouth 0
Company%20profile
%3Cp%3ECompany%20name%3A%20Shipsy%3Cbr%3EYear%20of%20inception%3A%202015%3Cbr%3EFounders%3A%20Soham%20Chokshi%2C%20Dhruv%20Agrawal%2C%20Harsh%20Kumar%20and%20Himanshu%20Gupta%3Cbr%3EBased%3A%20India%2C%20UAE%20and%20Indonesia%3Cbr%3ESector%3A%20logistics%3Cbr%3ESize%3A%20more%20than%20350%20employees%3Cbr%3EFunding%20received%20so%20far%3A%20%2431%20million%20in%20series%20A%20and%20B%20rounds%3Cbr%3EInvestors%3A%20Info%20Edge%2C%20Sequoia%20Capital%E2%80%99s%20Surge%2C%20A91%20Partners%20and%20Z3%20Partners%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
What it means to be a conservationist
Who is Enric Sala?
Enric Sala is an expert on marine conservation and is currently the National Geographic Society's Explorer-in-Residence. His love of the sea started with his childhood in Spain, inspired by the example of the legendary diver Jacques Cousteau. He has been a university professor of Oceanography in the US, as well as working at the Spanish National Council for Scientific Research and is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on Biodiversity and the Bio-Economy. He has dedicated his life to protecting life in the oceans. Enric describes himself as a flexitarian who only eats meat occasionally.
What is biodiversity?
According to the United Nations Environment Programme, all life on earth – including in its forests and oceans – forms a “rich tapestry of interconnecting and interdependent forces”. Biodiversity on earth today is the product of four billion years of evolution and consists of many millions of distinct biological species. The term ‘biodiversity’ is relatively new, popularised since the 1980s and coinciding with an understanding of the growing threats to the natural world including habitat loss, pollution and climate change. The loss of biodiversity itself is dangerous because it contributes to clean, consistent water flows, food security, protection from floods and storms and a stable climate. The natural world can be an ally in combating global climate change but to do so it must be protected. Nations are working to achieve this, including setting targets to be reached by 2020 for the protection of the natural state of 17 per cent of the land and 10 per cent of the oceans. However, these are well short of what is needed, according to experts, with half the land needed to be in a natural state to help avert disaster.
In-demand jobs and monthly salaries
- Technology expert in robotics and automation: Dh20,000 to Dh40,000
- Energy engineer: Dh25,000 to Dh30,000
- Production engineer: Dh30,000 to Dh40,000
- Data-driven supply chain management professional: Dh30,000 to Dh50,000
- HR leader: Dh40,000 to Dh60,000
- Engineering leader: Dh30,000 to Dh55,000
- Project manager: Dh55,000 to Dh65,000
- Senior reservoir engineer: Dh40,000 to Dh55,000
- Senior drilling engineer: Dh38,000 to Dh46,000
- Senior process engineer: Dh28,000 to Dh38,000
- Senior maintenance engineer: Dh22,000 to Dh34,000
- Field engineer: Dh6,500 to Dh7,500
- Field supervisor: Dh9,000 to Dh12,000
- Field operator: Dh5,000 to Dh7,000
Dubai Rugby Sevens
November 30-December 2, at The Sevens, Dubai
Gulf Under 19
Pool A – Abu Dhabi Harlequins, Jumeirah College Tigers, Dubai English Speaking School 1, Gems World Academy
Pool B – British School Al Khubairat, Bahrain Colts, Jumeirah College Lions, Dubai English Speaking School 2
Pool C - Dubai College A, Dubai Sharks, Jumeirah English Speaking School, Al Yasmina
Pool D – Dubai Exiles, Dubai Hurricanes, Al Ain Amblers, Deira International School
21 Lessons for the 21st Century
Yuval Noah Harari, Jonathan Cape
Essentials
The flights
Return flights from Dubai to Windhoek, with a combination of Emirates and Air Namibia, cost from US$790 (Dh2,902) via Johannesburg.
The trip
A 10-day self-drive in Namibia staying at a combination of the safari camps mentioned – Okonjima AfriCat, Little Kulala, Desert Rhino/Damaraland, Ongava – costs from $7,000 (Dh25,711) per person, including car hire (Toyota 4x4 or similar), but excluding international flights, with The Luxury Safari Company.
When to go
The cooler winter months, from June to September, are best, especially for game viewing.
The Dictionary of Animal Languages
Heidi Sopinka
Scribe
Short-term let permits explained
Homeowners and tenants are allowed to list their properties for rental by registering through the Dubai Tourism website to obtain a permit.
Tenants also require a letter of no objection from their landlord before being allowed to list the property.
There is a cost of Dh1,590 before starting the process, with an additional licence fee of Dh300 per bedroom being rented in your home for the duration of the rental, which ranges from three months to a year.
Anyone hoping to list a property for rental must also provide a copy of their title deeds and Ejari, as well as their Emirates ID.
LIKELY TEAMS
South Africa
Faf du Plessis (captain), Dean Elgar, Aiden Markram, Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers, Quinton de Kock (wkt), Vernon Philander, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Morne Morkel, Lungi Ngidi.
India (from)
Virat Kohli (captain), Murali Vijay, Lokesh Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik (wkt), Ravichandran Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ishant Sharma, Mohammad Shami, Jasprit Bumrah.
