MAZAR-I-SHARIF, Afghanistan : At home in northern Afghanistan, 19-year old Khushi draws a self-portrait - a figure enveloped by a blue burqa inside a cage.
"After the Taliban banned girls from universities and announced that girls can no longer continue our education, I felt so upset, day by day my mental health deteriorated, I ... finally decided to see a psychiatrist in order to get better."Afghan woman draw on paper in an art studio in Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan, on Aug 6, 2023.
The Taliban say they respect women's rights in line with their interpretation of Islamic law and Afghan culture. Khushi's psychiatrist, who also cannot be named for security reasons."Art studios are the only avenue we have left to help our patients... they have become the only place where girls can clear their minds, catch up with old friends, make new friends, and apart from that, they can learn art too."