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Female students protest in western Afghanistan

Failing that, the students say equivalent levels of boys' schools should remain closed until the girls' schools can also re-open.

Some Afghan girls have returned to primary schools with gender-segregated classes in recent days, but older girls have faced an anxious wait with no clarity over if and when they would be able to resume their studies at the secondary school level.

On Friday (September 17) the education ministry said boys' secondary schools would soon reopen, but made no mention of girls. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told Reuters on Sunday (September 19) that they want to "regulate women's commute to educational centers. This needs action and time."

Taliban officials have said they will not return to their fundamentalist policies, including the ban on girls receiving an education.