Through Her Eyes starts today.
Girls in this region are spoken about constantly. In reports, in resolutions, in headlines written by people who have never met them. They are counted, cited, and legislated over. They are almost never asked.
So we are asking.
From August 18 to International Day of the Girl on October 11, IHRDC is publishing eight weeks of stories from girls across Iran, Afghanistan and the broader Middle East — in their own words, wherever it is safe to tell them.
What you'll find here is not a catalogue of suffering. It is girls talking about school, and friendship, and music, and what they intend to do with their lives — alongside what has been taken from them. Both are true at once. Flattening one into the other is its own kind of erasure.
We're not going to tell you this campaign reopens a school or lifts a ban. It doesn't. But a girl who is heard is harder to disappear, and being heard is where every other right starts. That much we can do, and we intend to do it well.
Follow along. Share what stays with you.
@iranhrdc
#ThroughHerEyes
#DayOfTheGirl
#InternationalDayOfTheGirl
#Iran
#Afghanistan
#GirlsRights
#IHRDC
Girls in this region are spoken about constantly. In reports, in resolutions, in headlines written by people who have never met them. They are counted, cited, and legislated over. They are almost never asked.
So we are asking.
From August 18 to International Day of the Girl on October 11, IHRDC is publishing eight weeks of stories from girls across Iran, Afghanistan and the broader Middle East — in their own words, wherever it is safe to tell them.
What you'll find here is not a catalogue of suffering. It is girls talking about school, and friendship, and music, and what they intend to do with their lives — alongside what has been taken from them. Both are true at once. Flattening one into the other is its own kind of erasure.
We're not going to tell you this campaign reopens a school or lifts a ban. It doesn't. But a girl who is heard is harder to disappear, and being heard is where every other right starts. That much we can do, and we intend to do it well.
Follow along. Share what stays with you.
@iranhrdc
#ThroughHerEyes
#DayOfTheGirl
#InternationalDayOfTheGirl
#Iran
#Afghanistan
#GirlsRights
#IHRDC
Media is too big
VIEW IN TELEGRAM
Say Their Names
Girls killed in the crackdown of January 2026
• During the crackdown of January 2026, the Islamic Republic’s security forces
killed thousands of Iranians. Among them were girls and young women who had gone out to protest peacefully.
• Families were pressured into small or secret burials, sometimes at night, and told not to speak publicly about what had happened to their daughters. State media called the dead “rioters.” The internet had been cut for days, so the scale of it stayed hidden for a time.
• Thousands more were arrested, girls and young women among them. Most were held without access to their families or lawyers. Some remain unaccounted for.
• Sevda Akramifard, Nazanin Zahra Salehi, Ghazal Janghorban, Arnika Dabbagh, Melina Asadi, Bahar Shadmehri, Kimia Kamyab, Faezeh Izadi, Nazanin Esmikhani, Esra Tavousinia, Sana Tousangi, Yalda Mohammadkhani, Setayesh Samadi, Niousha Hamidi, Shiva Javid, Melika Shahmoradi, Fatemeh-Raha Tajian, Samira Khani, Bahar Hosseini are among the confirmed deaths. There are many more ...
• A name is the last thing a state can take, and the first thing anyone can give back. So repeat them. Today, and next January, when the news has moved on and those who gave the orders are counting on you having forgotten.
@iranhrdc
#SayTheirNames
#Iran
#IranProtests
#GirlsRights #InternationalDayOfTheGirl
#ThroughHerEyes
#IHRDC
Girls killed in the crackdown of January 2026
• During the crackdown of January 2026, the Islamic Republic’s security forces
killed thousands of Iranians. Among them were girls and young women who had gone out to protest peacefully.
• Families were pressured into small or secret burials, sometimes at night, and told not to speak publicly about what had happened to their daughters. State media called the dead “rioters.” The internet had been cut for days, so the scale of it stayed hidden for a time.
• Thousands more were arrested, girls and young women among them. Most were held without access to their families or lawyers. Some remain unaccounted for.
• Sevda Akramifard, Nazanin Zahra Salehi, Ghazal Janghorban, Arnika Dabbagh, Melina Asadi, Bahar Shadmehri, Kimia Kamyab, Faezeh Izadi, Nazanin Esmikhani, Esra Tavousinia, Sana Tousangi, Yalda Mohammadkhani, Setayesh Samadi, Niousha Hamidi, Shiva Javid, Melika Shahmoradi, Fatemeh-Raha Tajian, Samira Khani, Bahar Hosseini are among the confirmed deaths. There are many more ...
• A name is the last thing a state can take, and the first thing anyone can give back. So repeat them. Today, and next January, when the news has moved on and those who gave the orders are counting on you having forgotten.
@iranhrdc
#SayTheirNames
#Iran
#IranProtests
#GirlsRights #InternationalDayOfTheGirl
#ThroughHerEyes
#IHRDC
Five years ago, the Taliban returned to Kabul. Within a year, Afghanistan became the only country on earth that bars girls from secondary school and women from university.
In this post, we share the story of Elaheh — one woman among millions, in her own words.
Originally published by BBC Dari.
@iranhrdc
#ThroughHerEyes
#Afghanistan
#AfghanGirls
#DayOfTheGirl
#GirlsEducation
#IHRDC
In this post, we share the story of Elaheh — one woman among millions, in her own words.
Originally published by BBC Dari.
@iranhrdc
#ThroughHerEyes
#Afghanistan
#AfghanGirls
#DayOfTheGirl
#GirlsEducation
#IHRDC
Media is too big
VIEW IN TELEGRAM
On February 28, 2026, the Shajareh Tayyebeh school in Minab, Hormozgan Province, was struck while children were inside. 120 children, aged 6 to 13, were killed. Many of them were girls.
They were at school to learn. Their deaths must not be reduced to anonymous statistics. The circumstances of the strike demand a transparent, independent and thorough investigation.
We remember the children of Minab. Their families deserve truth, justice and accountability.
@iranhrdc
#SayTheirNames
#Minab
#Iran
#GirlsRights
#InternationalDayOfTheGirl
#ThroughHerEyes
#IHRDC
They were at school to learn. Their deaths must not be reduced to anonymous statistics. The circumstances of the strike demand a transparent, independent and thorough investigation.
We remember the children of Minab. Their families deserve truth, justice and accountability.
@iranhrdc
#SayTheirNames
#Minab
#Iran
#GirlsRights
#InternationalDayOfTheGirl
#ThroughHerEyes
#IHRDC
Following the “Woman, Life, Freedom” movement, Iranian girls and women, despite pressure, arrest, violence, and even loss of life, have not backed down from their position on compulsory hijab.
From a human rights perspective, the issue is not simply “hijab;” it is a woman’s right to her own body, clothing, and choices. No government should be able to take that choice away from women through laws, threats, or punishment.
From a social perspective, what has changed is not only the behavior of girls and women; it is the relationship between law and society. Millions of women and girls have shown that it is possible to reject a legal obligation and stand against the normalization of coercion.
The Islamic Republic continues to maintain laws and repressive tools to impose compulsory hijab and, at various points, has sought to advance the implementation of more restrictive measures. Yet, in the face of widespread resistance by women, the implementation of these policies has repeatedly encountered retreat, suspension, or delay.
This does not mean that compulsory hijab has come to an end. But an important change has taken place: the government can no longer assume that it can control the behavior of millions of women as easily as it once did through law and force.
Iranian women and girls may not have won the entire battle yet, but they have broken through the first line of defense: the belief that their bodies and clothing are under the control of the government.
@iranhrdc
#ThroughHerEyes
#DayOfTheGirl
#InternationalDayOfTheGirl
#CompulsoryHijab
#WomanLifeFreedom
#HumanRights
From a human rights perspective, the issue is not simply “hijab;” it is a woman’s right to her own body, clothing, and choices. No government should be able to take that choice away from women through laws, threats, or punishment.
From a social perspective, what has changed is not only the behavior of girls and women; it is the relationship between law and society. Millions of women and girls have shown that it is possible to reject a legal obligation and stand against the normalization of coercion.
The Islamic Republic continues to maintain laws and repressive tools to impose compulsory hijab and, at various points, has sought to advance the implementation of more restrictive measures. Yet, in the face of widespread resistance by women, the implementation of these policies has repeatedly encountered retreat, suspension, or delay.
This does not mean that compulsory hijab has come to an end. But an important change has taken place: the government can no longer assume that it can control the behavior of millions of women as easily as it once did through law and force.
Iranian women and girls may not have won the entire battle yet, but they have broken through the first line of defense: the belief that their bodies and clothing are under the control of the government.
@iranhrdc
#ThroughHerEyes
#DayOfTheGirl
#InternationalDayOfTheGirl
#CompulsoryHijab
#WomanLifeFreedom
#HumanRights
She was an economics student in Afghanistan’s Parwan Province. But when universities were closed to girls, the course of her life suddenly changed.
Losing her place at university also meant losing opportunities to earn an income. She returned to a skill that had once been just a hobby: knitting. She learned from a woman who ran a similar business and gradually developed a style of her own.
For four years, she kept going. She knitted bags, wallets, and jewelry while searching for ways to reach customers. But the challenges were significant: she had no place to work outside the home and no suitable local market to sell her products. Her monthly income was around 4,000–5,000 Afghanis—far from enough to meet her financial needs.
Then she found another path online. After taking business and digital skills training, she launched her own online shop, allowing her to reach customers beyond Parwan.
Today, she says she earns an income, is able to address some of her financial challenges, and is moving toward greater self-reliance.
The university was taken away from her, but she worked to build another path toward independence.
This story is based on a story published by UN Women.
@iranhrdc
#ThroughHerEyes
#Afghanistan
#AfghanGirls
#DayOfTheGirl
#GirlsEducation
#IHRDC
Losing her place at university also meant losing opportunities to earn an income. She returned to a skill that had once been just a hobby: knitting. She learned from a woman who ran a similar business and gradually developed a style of her own.
For four years, she kept going. She knitted bags, wallets, and jewelry while searching for ways to reach customers. But the challenges were significant: she had no place to work outside the home and no suitable local market to sell her products. Her monthly income was around 4,000–5,000 Afghanis—far from enough to meet her financial needs.
Then she found another path online. After taking business and digital skills training, she launched her own online shop, allowing her to reach customers beyond Parwan.
Today, she says she earns an income, is able to address some of her financial challenges, and is moving toward greater self-reliance.
The university was taken away from her, but she worked to build another path toward independence.
This story is based on a story published by UN Women.
@iranhrdc
#ThroughHerEyes
#Afghanistan
#AfghanGirls
#DayOfTheGirl
#GirlsEducation
#IHRDC
Media is too big
VIEW IN TELEGRAM
For many girls in Iran, resilience does not begin behind a school desk.
It begins with the road they must take to get there.
In Sistan and Baluchestan Province, girls in rural communities face significant barriers to continuing their education. In many areas, schools beyond the lower grades are scarce or unavailable. Long distances, limited transportation, teacher shortages, inadequate educational resources, and financial hardship can all stand between girls and the classroom.
In some communities, girls must travel to another village or town to continue their studies. When transportation is unavailable or unaffordable, staying in school becomes even more difficult.
A shortage of teachers—particularly female teachers—limited access to girls’ schools, inadequate facilities, economic hardship, and, in some cases, early marriage can further disrupt girls’ education.
And yet, many girls continue to find ways to stay in school.
Their persistence in the face of these challenges is part of everyday life. But when schools, transportation, and educational resources are out of reach, dropping out cannot simply be blamed on girls or their families. It reflects years of government neglect of essential educational and human-development infrastructure in Iran’s youngest province.
For these girls, leaving school means more than ending their education. It can change the course of their lives—and shape the opportunities available to the generations that follow.
Girls’ education is not a privilege. It is a fundamental right.
@iranhrdc
#ThroughHerEyes
#InternationalDayOfTheGirl
#DayOfTheGir
#SistanAndBaluchestan
#BalochGirls
#RightToEducation
#EducationalJustice
#IranHRDC
It begins with the road they must take to get there.
In Sistan and Baluchestan Province, girls in rural communities face significant barriers to continuing their education. In many areas, schools beyond the lower grades are scarce or unavailable. Long distances, limited transportation, teacher shortages, inadequate educational resources, and financial hardship can all stand between girls and the classroom.
In some communities, girls must travel to another village or town to continue their studies. When transportation is unavailable or unaffordable, staying in school becomes even more difficult.
A shortage of teachers—particularly female teachers—limited access to girls’ schools, inadequate facilities, economic hardship, and, in some cases, early marriage can further disrupt girls’ education.
And yet, many girls continue to find ways to stay in school.
Their persistence in the face of these challenges is part of everyday life. But when schools, transportation, and educational resources are out of reach, dropping out cannot simply be blamed on girls or their families. It reflects years of government neglect of essential educational and human-development infrastructure in Iran’s youngest province.
For these girls, leaving school means more than ending their education. It can change the course of their lives—and shape the opportunities available to the generations that follow.
Girls’ education is not a privilege. It is a fundamental right.
@iranhrdc
#ThroughHerEyes
#InternationalDayOfTheGirl
#DayOfTheGir
#SistanAndBaluchestan
#BalochGirls
#RightToEducation
#EducationalJustice
#IranHRDC