Taliban Order CNN Reporter To Stand Aside Because She's A Woman

A reporter in Afghanistan was ordered to stand aside by the Taliban because she's a woman.

Clarissa Ward was reporting on the ground for CNN when she was ushered to the side.

She said: "They've just told me to stand to the side because I'm a woman."

You can see the moment in the video below:

It comes amid international concern about the rights of women in Afghanistan under Taliban rule, after the group seized power in large swathes of the country.

Citizens have been trying to flee the nation in their droves, and many fear life for women in particular could now be severely restricted.

Aisha Ahmad, who studies computer science at Kabul University, is now trying to seek asylum and has urged global leaders not to 'forget Afghan women'.

The 22-year-old was left badly bruised among a melee of people trying to catch a flight out of Hamid Karzai International Airport in the capital on Sunday (15 August) evening.

PA

"The crowds were pushed by police, kids and women were on the ground, I was injured on my hands and feet and knees," she told the PA news agency.

After failing to board a flight, Aisha issued a plea on social media asking for a country to offer her asylum so she could finish her education - which she no longer believes will be possible.

She said: "I have lost my hope and I think it will not be an easy path.

"I feel like I'm in a tunnel... I can't see any bright light and don't know how long the tunnel is."

Asked for the message she wishes to share with Western governments, she said: "Don't forget the Afghan women... we should have the right to go to school."

PA

Speaking yesterday (Monday 16 August), Joe Biden said he stands 'squarely behind' his decision to withdraw troops from the country.

The US President has been blamed by some for the Taliban takeover, but he insisted the takeover had in fact vindicated the withdrawal.

He said: "The truth is, this did unfold more quickly than we had anticipated.

"So what has happened? Afghanistan political leaders gave up and fled the country. The Afghan military collapsed. Sometimes without trying to fight.

"If anything, the developments of the past week reinforced that ending US military involvement in Afghanistan now was the right decision."

Topics: World News

Jake Massey

Jake Massey is a journalist at LADbible. He graduated from Newcastle University, where he learnt a bit about media and a lot about living without heating. After spending a few years in Australia and New Zealand, Jake secured a role at an obscure radio station in Norwich, inadvertently becoming a real-life Alan Partridge in the process. From there, Jake became a reporter at the Eastern Daily Press. Jake enjoys playing football, listening to music and writing about himself in the third person.

@jakesmassey