Author: Sarah Hamidi

Sarah Hamidi (she/her) is a policy and research intern at the Feminist Majority Foundation, where she works on the Campaign for Afghan Women and Girls. She is a senior at American University studying communication, law, economics and government. A first-generation Afghan American and an advocate for gender equality and women in conflict settings, her recent research and studies have focused on the status of women’s rights and ending gender apartheid in Afghanistan.

A New Phase of U.S.-Taliban Relations Leaves Afghan Women in the Shadows

A new phase in U.S.–Taliban relations appears to be quietly unfolding under the Trump administration—marked by lifted bounties on senior Taliban officials, a symbolic embassy cleanup in Kabul, and the release of an American hostage. While these developments are being framed as constructive steps toward diplomacy, they also reveal a stark reality: The future of U.S.–Taliban engagement may be transactional, and Afghan women and girls are likely to be left out of the equation.