Maryam Nawaz, the chief minister of Pakistan’s Punjab province, on Saturday expressed regret over the educational restrictions on girls in Afghanistan, calling on the international community to address the issue.

Speaking at the Antalya Diplomacy Forum in Turkey, Maryam stressed that no society progresses without investing in the welfare of women and children.

“Innocent children lie under the rubble in Palestine. Girls in Afghanistan are denied access to schools. The children of Kashmir are victims of oppression. In Sudan, they walk miles for food. These are not isolated issues—they demand collective human response,” she said.

The Islamic Emirate has suspended education of girls beyond sixth grade.

This policy has been widely criticised internationally.

The Supreme Leader of the islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) Hibatullah Akhundzada has defended public executions and said these are an integral part of Islam.

In a voice clip reportedly taped during a speech at a seminar for Hajj instructors in Kandahar on Saturday, Akhundzada said: “We must carry out disciplinary measures, perform prayers and acts of worship. We must enter Islam completely. Islam is not just limited to a few rituals; it is a comprehensive system of all divine commands.”

Not a single command of Islam should be left unfulfilled, he is heard saying on the voice clip, which was posted to X by the IEA’s spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid.

God had commanded people to pray and to enforce his punishments, said Akhundzada, adding that the IEA did not wage war for power or wealth but rather to “implement Islamic law”. He rejected criticism of the executions.

This comes after widespread condemnation following the execution by firing squad on Friday of four men convicted of murder.

Akhundzada has previously rejected the need for Western laws in Afghanistan.

He said Saturday: “Yesterday, executions were carried out. You saw how much protest was raised in the world, and said that they [IEA] kill people, that they are oppressors, that they terrorize people. They call this terror; they call this against Sharia; but this is a Sharia order to take revenge. One order is to implement the orders of Allah. One order is to impose punishments,” said Akhundzada.
He added that the Islamic Emirate is facing a great test but they will not bargain with the world over Islam, religion, and the Prophet (PBUH).

The new cutoffs in U.S. emergency food aid could worsen the already widespread hunger in Afghanistan, as the World Food Program (WFP) can only support half of the impoverished people with just half rations, warned the WFP on Saturday.

As part of its plan to reduce government deficits, Trump’s administration decided in January to freeze all foreign aid for three months, and more recently, to terminate its emergency food funding to the WFP.

The latest cut, according to the WFP, is amounting to “a death sentence for millions of people” if implemented.

Mutinta Chimuka, WFP’s acting country director, urged international donors to keep supporting Afghanistan, as the country is facing the world’s second-largest humanitarian crisis.

According to Chimuka, the agency can provide assistance to barely eight million people this year. Chimuka said that is an estimation based on its optimistic anticipation that “we get everything else that we are expecting from other donors”.

To stretch the limited resources, the WFP has been giving a half ration to the impoverished individuals, she added.

The WFP plans to provide food assistance to two million people to fight against hunger in the future months, but Chimuka expressed her worries given the limited funding.