The emergency briefing took place on Tuesday 31st January between 18:30 and 19:15  GMT, and was chaired by writer, broadcaster and Ambassador for The Circle, Lucy Siegle, the expert panel will include Afghan politician, human rights activist, and former Minister of Women’s Affairs, Hasina Safi, and the lawyer, campaigner and co-founder of the Action For Afghanistan coalition, Zehra Zaidi.  Singer-songwriter and Founder of The Circle, Annie Lennox opened the event and launch of the series with a personal address.

Since the Taliban reclaimed power in August 2021, Afghan women have faced a situation described by campaigner Malala Yousafzai as “gender apartheid”: unable to work in their former jobs; unable to continue attending school or university; unable to access essential healthcare; and facing brutal punishment if they breach any of the new laws imposed on them, let alone speak up against them.  

As the brutal grip of Taliban rule grows ever tighter, the expert panel will discuss the impact on the daily lives of Afghan women and girls and explore what action the international community – and women around the world – can take to support them.  

The event marked the launch of The Circle’s Global Feminism Series, a programme of events designed to amplify the voices of women around the world fighting tirelessly for gender equality, female empowerment, and an end to sexual violence, especially those on the front line of those battles.