Letter submitted by Yal Bano, a WoLF member who lives in Afghanistan

I am really sad, but I can't stop. 

When I heard the horrible news my heart broke again. 

The Taliban banned girls from school. We have a program for students and we help them to learn; we hoped that students will be able to go university when the university door wasn't closed, but unfortunately last night we heard the heartbreaking news.

First they banned school, and we hoped and fought and created private and secret schools to help students. We hoped that after our school, the students would be able to study at university.

But unfortunately, the Taliban's Ministry of Higher Education has "suspended" girls' education in all public and private universities. If there is no school, no university, then what will our future be like? My heart is full of pain. I don't see hope or a good future for me, my sisters, and all other young students like me and other girls. 

Some of the Taliban leaders daughters study abroad in universities, but they ban girls from learning in here. But, more Taliban members are still in Afghanistan and they need women doctors to treat their girls and women. 

I see there is no hope for girls and women in here. There is no future. Women are in a dark prison and we don't know what our crime is. When will they release us?

All women and girls wish to be a boy instead of a girl.

I don't have more power — I can only raise my voice for Afghan women around the world. 

The Taliban's next plan: women are not allowed to breathe. Brave women protestors have been arrested by the Taliban today for protesting against the decision to ban women from university. When arrested women ask, “Is it all you can do, to suppress women?" The Taliban reply, "Don't talk or I will kill you."

Before the Taliban takeover, girls and boys studied in the same classes, but after the Taliban, they separated the classes. There were even separate days for classes; 3 days of the week were for girls and 3 days of the week were for boys. Students accepted the new rules to study but unfortunately the Taliban closed the university doors to women. 

No school, no courses, no universities. In more areas, the Taliban won't permit women or girls to go out of their homes, because the Taliban thinks they may protest against them. But despite all this, women came out for a protest. The Taliban arrested 10 women .

More teachers resigned from their work, and the Taliban beat some of the teachers very badly. According to reports, several students died by suicide due to the new restriction. In those areas where students don't have access to internet, the situation may be more horrible.

I wish I and other girls were not girls, and we were all boys. I wish all of us girls were not from Afghanistan.

Please share our voices with others to know about our pain for action.

A note from WoLF: Yal Bano’s group is an unincorporated women's rights group that funds its services through direct donations made to group members, who are based in Afghanistan. At this time, there is no way to contribute online; if you want to support Yal Bano’s work, you can contact WoLF for more information. Yal Bano says that she appreciates you sharing her story as a way to show support for Afghan women and girls.