On Thursday March 19, 2015, an angry mob brutally killed 27-year-old Farkhunda near a Kabul mosque after she had been accused of burning copy of the Koran. Read more here, and other news about women.

‘The Underground Girls of Kabul’ sheds light on the various facets, effects and outcomes of the practice Bacha Posh in Afghanistan, where girls are brought up as boys in families that have no male members. (Credit: ArmyAmber, Pixabay)

Sex is, by definition, illegal in Afghanistan: The marriage contract is what finally turns it into a permissible act between husband and wife. Many a time, Afghan women joke about the unfortunate “chore” of being in bed with their husbands. But this “chore” becomes unbearable for women who have spent their entire childhood thinking they were boys. Bacha posh, or girls raised and presented to the world as boys, is a ‘hidden’ Afghan custom.

Deutsche Welle journalist Waslat Hasrat Nazimi has been nominated for this year’s Rumi award for best international journalism. She is the first woman journalist to be nominated in this category of the Rumi prize, named after the 13th century poet, jurist, theologian and Sufi mystic Mawlana Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Balkhi Rumi . Here, she shares some of her thoughts and experiences as a German-Afghan journalist.

Copyright: DW/W. Hasrat-Nazimi

This week, we feature Afghan politician Shukria Barakzai. The outspoken female leader survived an attack on her car some days ago.

Here’s a round-up of women’s news that made it to the headlines. Did we miss something? Let us know through your comments.

German photographer Ann-Christine Woehrl has taken pictures of women who survived acid attacks – and discovered extraordinary strength.

Acid attacks in several Asian countries like India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan have been plaguing women for a very long time. In fact, even men have sometimes fallen prey to obsessed lovers who use this method to take revenge. Here is a repost of an older Women Talk Online report in which an acid attack survivor, Sonali Mukherjee, spoke to Samrah Fatima about her experiences.

Afghan citizens want more empowerment and a say in how they will run their country. They are now eagerly waiting for the results of the presidential elections to emerge.