UNAMA Reports Civilian Casualties, Arbitrary Detentions and Women's Rights Restrictions in Late 2025
The UN Human Rights Service of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) reported that in the last three months of 2025, from October 1 to December 31, at least 547 civilians were killed or injured in conflicts, including 70 killed and 447 wounded.
UNAMA documented over 520 arbitrary detentions, 50 cases of ill-treatment of women and men, 14 extrajudicial killings, 28 arbitrary detentions of former military personnel, and at least seven cases of torture and ill-treatment of former Afghan security and defense forces members. The mission expressed concern over extrajudicial killings, torture and Taliban restrictions on women's rights, including bans on studying medical fields, accessing health services without a mahram, working in beauty salons and appearing in public places.
Taliban authorities executed two people and carried out public corporal punishments on 287 others, including women and children. UNAMA also noted detentions of social media users and ongoing internet restrictions. The Ministry of Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, in coordination with other ministries, enforced rules on men's beards, women's hijab, mahram requirements, bans on music and images of living beings, and mandatory congregational prayers.
Specific incidents included 520 arbitrary arrests and 50 ill-treatments by ministry staff, mainly for short beards, Western hairstyles, music and hijab violations. On November 14, no female students were allowed to take medical graduation exams, amid ongoing bans on higher education for women since December 2022 and health institutes since December 2024. From September 7, 2025, Taliban authorities barred Afghan women UN staff from entering UN premises nationwide.
In Kandahar and Uruzgan, ministry enforcers banned women without mahrams from health services, prevented women health workers from working without mahrams and monitored clinics. In Uruzgan, drivers were ordered not to transport such women; in Kandahar, shopkeepers were threatened against selling to them. In Herat, women were arrested for lacking burqas and barred from hospitals, government offices and wedding halls. Restrictions on women's movement persisted in some provinces, including preventing women from Friday markets in October with warning shots and stopping morning walks in Zabul on October 6.
Border tensions between Taliban forces and Pakistani military caused over 500 civilian casualties, including 47 killed and 456 wounded, with widespread physical, psychological and financial harm.
More in Security
Interior Ministry Assures ISIS Completely Suppressed, Seeks Security Cooperation with Neighbors
Terrorist Activities Observed Along Afghanistan Borders, Says Lavrov; Pakistan President Warns of Pre-9/11 Conditions
IEA Spokesperson Dismisses UN Security Council Concerns on Afghanistan's Security as Unfounded
Explosion at Mosque in Islamabad Kills 31, Injures 170; Islamic Emirate Condemns Attack
Interior Ministry Assures ISIS Completely Suppressed, Seeks Security Cooperation with Neighbors
Afghanistan's Ministry of Interior claims ISIS has been fully suppressed with no physical presence in the country and is coordinating with neighboring states to counter security threats from their territory. Analysts stress the need for transnational cooperation and guarantees against cross-border terrorism.
Terrorist Activities Observed Along Afghanistan Borders, Says Lavrov; Pakistan President Warns of Pre-9/11 Conditions
Russian FM Sergei Lavrov reports ongoing terrorist activities along Afghan borders, while Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari claims conditions there resemble or exceed pre-9/11 levels. Afghan officials discuss border cooperation with Iran and engage diplomatically on security and humanitarian issues.
IEA Spokesperson Dismisses UN Security Council Concerns on Afghanistan's Security as Unfounded
Zabihullah Mujahid rejected UN Security Council concerns on Afghanistan's security and ISIS presence as unfounded, while US, UK, UN and Chinese officials warned of ongoing ISIS-Khorasan threats requiring action.
Explosion at Mosque in Islamabad Kills 31, Injures 170; Islamic Emirate Condemns Attack
An explosion at a Shia mosque in Islamabad's Tarlai area during Friday prayers killed 31 people and injured 170 others, prompting condemnations from Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Western embassies, and Afghanistan's Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. The incident occurred amid other attacks in Balochistan, including one on polio workers.