Afghan Women Face Mental Health Crisis Amid Taliban Restrictions After Earthquakes
In eastern Afghanistan, months after devastating earthquakes, the greatest crisis is no longer the tremors but the collapse of psychological and medical support for women. The World Health Organization (WHO) warns that gender restrictions, a shortage of female specialists, and the lack of safe spaces in camps have severely hindered women’s access to essential care.
According to the WHO’s latest report, Taliban-imposed movement restrictions on female staff and the absence of gender-sensitive facilities in health centers have left women and girls more vulnerable to violence and deprived of treatment. As a result, many earthquake-affected women cannot even access basic mental health services or maternal and child care.
Meanwhile, psychological teams deployed in Nangarhar and Kunar have provided 2,168 counseling sessions, but experts say this number is negligible compared to the vast population in need. They stress that the long-term impacts of post-traumatic stress, anxiety, and depression could haunt communities for years.
The WHO report also highlights a surge in communicable diseases in quake-hit regions: in Kunar alone, 8,506 cases of infections—including respiratory illnesses, acute diarrhea, malaria, and COVID-19—have been recorded. With winter approaching, the risks of respiratory outbreaks and new epidemics are rising.
Logistically, more than 52 tons of medicines and medical supplies have been delivered to Afghanistan, but resources remain insufficient. At least $6.9 million is needed to sustain the emergency response, much of which has yet to be secured.
Estimates suggest that nearly half a million people require immediate aid, with pregnant women, the elderly, and people with disabilities among the most at risk. While media coverage remains focused on casualties and destroyed homes, the real crisis is unfolding in camps and clinics, where women and girls fight in silence for their most basic rights to health and psychological care.
