The Afghan Taliban government has removed books written by women from Afghanistan's university teaching system as part of a new ban that also prohibits teaching about human rights and sexual harassment.

Some 140 books by women, including titles such as Safety in the Chemical Laboratory were among 680 books discovered to be of "concern" due to "anti-Sharia and Taliban policies".

The universities were also informed that they could no longer teach 18 subjects, citing a Taliban official as saying they were "in conflict with the principles of Sharia and the system's policy".

The decree is the latest in a series of restrictions imposed by the Taliban since retaking power four years ago.

Just this week, the Taliban's supreme leader issued an order banning fiber-optic internet in at least ten provinces, citing the need to prevent immorality.

While the rules have had an impact on many aspects of life, women and girls have been particularly hard hit: they are barred from pursuing education beyond sixth grade, and one of their last avenues to further training will be closed in late 2024, when midwifery courses are quietly discontinued.

Six of the 18 banned university subjects are specifically about women, including Gender and Development, The Role of Women in Communication, and Women's Sociology.

The Taliban government has stated that it respects women's rights in accordance with their understanding of Afghan culture and Islamic law.

'A void in education'

A member of the committee reviewing the books confirmed the ban on books written by women, telling BBC Afghan that "all books authored by women are not allowed to be taught".

Zakia Adeli, the former deputy minister of justice prior to the Taliban's return and one of the authors whose books have been banned, was not surprised by the move.

"Considering what the Taliban have done over the past four years, it was not far-fetched to expect them to impose changes on the curriculum," she siad.

"Given the Taliban's misogynistic mindset and policies, it is only natural that when women themselves are not allowed to study, their views, ideas and writings are also suppressed."

The new guidelines, as seen by BBC Afghan, were issued in late August.

In a letter to universities, Ziaur Rahman Aryubi, the deputy academic director of the Taliban government's Ministry of Higher Education, stated that the decisions were made by a panel of "religious scholars and experts".

Along with books by women, the ban appears to have targeted books by Iranian authors or publishers, with one member of the book review panel telling the BBC that it was designed to "prevent the infiltration of Iranian content" into the Afghan curriculum.

The 50-page list sent to all Afghan universities includes 679 titles, 310 of which are either written by Iranian authors or published in Iran.

Two different people, including one from the book review committee, told BBC Afghan that the decision was made to "prevent the infiltration of Iranian content" into the curriculum.

The neighbouring countries have a strained relationship, clashing over issues such as water rights in recent years. Iran has also forced more than 1.5 million Afghans who had been living in the country to return across the border since January, citing rising anti-Afghan sentiment.

However, the decision has alarmed some lecturers, with one professor at one institution, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, expressing concern that it would be nearly impossible to fill the gap.

"Books by Iranian authors and translators are the primary link between Afghanistan's universities and the international academic community. Their removal leaves a significant void in higher education," he stated.

A professor at Kabul University told the BBC that in such circumstances, they are forced to prepare textbook chapters themselves, taking into account the Taliban government's dos and don'ts.

But the crucial question is whether these chapters can be prepared in accordance with global standards or not.