On February 4, 2026, the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security (GIWPS) hosted “Afghan Women Demand Their Rights,” an event featuring a private screening of The Sharp Edge of Peace, directed by Roya Sadat, Afghanistan’s first female filmmaker, followed by a panel discussion. The film and discussion highlighted Afghan women’s dedicated struggle for equality, justice, and peace, focusing on the legacy of Afghan women as resilient resisters to the Taliban regime, particularly the four women who reached the negotiation table in 2020.

Ambassador Melanne Verveer, Executive Director of GIWPS, opened the event by introducing the film and highlighting the recent escalations in violence against women. She addressed the Taliban’s new Criminal Procedural Regulation for Courts, containing 119 articles, three chapters, and 10 sections (GIWPS publication). She referenced the GIWPS January 2026 publication, The Taliban’s New Criminal Regulation Legalizes Slavery, Violence, and Repression of Women, an analysis of these regulations and their implications, about which much of the international community has remained silent. Ambassador Verveer then introduced Roya Sadat, who attended the event in person. Sadat is the President of Roya Film House, established in 2003 and co-founded with her sister, making it Afghanistan’s first women-run film company. Through Roya Film House’s productions, Sadat portrays Afghan women as agents of change and resistance, rather than victims, with over 40 films focused on women’s rights and social justice.

About the Film

The film weaves the intimate, domestic spaces Afghan women inhabit, and the male-dominated political realm together, showing women engaging in political discussions over tea in their homes, ironing their hijabs the night before negotiations, protesting in the streets, or sharing their experiences under the Taliban in private rooms. It examines the evolution of women’s rights in Afghanistan, tracing both the generations of struggle that secured them and how those rights have shifted dramatically over time, from suffrage in 1919, through war and occupation, to the historical and contemporary role of the Taliban.

Sadat explained that her guiding question in creating the film was: “What can I show that people have yet to hear about Afghanistan?” In her director’s statement, she writes:

In the shadow of uncertainty and danger, our team embarked on a mission to capture the raw emotions and unfiltered truths of those living in the aftermath of this conflict – particularly four of the women risking their lives to bring about real and lasting change. A visual history that will shake any dormant conscience…

After watching the film, it is clear Sadat achieved The Sharp Edge of Peace‘s goal. The film does not romanticize the women’s involvement in the Doha Talks or their roles as activists and leaders in Afghanistan. Instead, it follows the women to the negotiations, where they made the needs of Afghan women a central priority for the country’s future, risking their lives and ultimately seeing their efforts sidelined by other agendas, including by the United States. The current situation in Afghanistan does not surprise them as they had warned would occur if the priorities of women and civil society were not adequately addressed.

The Doha Talks

In February of 2020 the United States and the Taliban reached an agreement in Doha, Qatar, the ‘Agreement for Bringing Peace to Afghanistan’.  Alongside this agreement, the United States and the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan signed a joint declaration in Kabul,  affirming ‘intra-Afghan’ peace negotiations. This ‘intra-Afghan’ discussion(s), also took place in Doha, and included representatives from the Afghan government, the Taliban, the U.S., and other international officials. The documentary highlights the four Afghan women appointed by the Afghan government to its 26-member negotiating delegation: Fatima Gailani, Fawzia Koofi, Habiba Sarabi, and Sharifa Zurmati.

In Doha, the film shows press recordings with the Taliban, a meeting between the women and Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad, the U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation, where he claimed women’s rights were a priority, and the women negotiating with the Taliban, who did not recognize their right to be there. Negotiating with the Taliban, Koofi recalled, “was not easy,” though she and her colleagues remained determined to approach the talks with tolerance. As women at the table, they were frequently sidelined and “often ignored,” she said in an interview with UN Women. At times, “the doors would be shut for us,” and in some meetings, they were excluded altogether.

The four women adhered to a strict internal code, with one rule requiring them to represent women “in every single part of the negotiations, in every single meeting.” No matter the obstacle, they insisted on being present and heard (UN Women). They also prioritized staying connected to communities back home, traveling back and forth between Doha and Kabul. During breaks in the talks, they would return to Kabul to “consult with civil society, consult with women,” listening to women’s stories and drafting statements about the issues they faced. These four women saw it as their responsibility to carry those perspectives “from inside the country to the negotiations table,” ensuring that Afghan women’s voices were not erased from the process and doing what UNSCR 1325 has always called for, displaying that women’s issues benefit all of civil society.

In the film, one of the female negotiators is shown leaving a meeting with the Taliban wearing high heels, enduring their discomfort as an act of resistance. She explains that she wears them in solidarity with women who, under the first Taliban regime, were beaten with pipes for wearing heels, since the Taliban disapproved of the noise they made and the attention they drew. Drawing a parallel, she asserts to the Taliban, “You have to see me,” and insists, “You have to recognize me as a member of Afghan society.”

One cannot watch the film without noticing the personal, emotional, and psychological toll of the negotiations. In one scene, Habiba expresses her grief, saying, “I am not a weak woman, but I cried for two days,” after learning that nearly 80 children, most of them girls, were killed in a bombing in May 2021 when she was in Doha. This tragedy happened while the U.S. was still present in-country, highlighting the persistent violence taking place despite the international presence in Afghanistan, something these women repeatedly drew attention to despite the Taliban’s attempts to present a reformed image of their regime.

Post-Film Discussion

The participation of Dr. Habiba Sarabi, one of the film’s central figures, was the highlight of the event. Sarabi’s life exemplifies extraordinary courage; she was the first woman to serve as governor in Afghanistan, leading Bamyan Province (read more about Habiba and the rest of the negotiators here). During the post-screening Q&A, panelists addressed several urgent issues. Dr. Mirwais Balkhi, former Minister of Education of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, discussed the phenomenon of ‘Madrasafication’ (read his article here), challenging the perception that the Taliban are anti-education. He explained its potential impacts, particularly the promotion of jihadist education for boys. As noted in the article referenced during the panel, “Increasing Jihadi schools and Jihadi literacy and attracting youth to these schools spreads an extremist mentality… They will eventually become suitable soldiers for recruitment to the Taliban and other domestic and international terrorist groups.” Dr. Balkhi also discussed the regional and global ramifications of this education, emphasizing its gendered impact on young boys—not just in Afghanistan but across the region.

Metra Mehran, an Afghan human rights activist, then spoke about the human rights situation, emphasizing the importance of documenting human rights violations and clearly identifying gender apartheid* to raise in the international community, document violations of international law, prevent a culture of impunity, and provide a platform for justice and dignity for victims. She also highlighted efforts such as the role of the People’s Tribunal of Women and Girls of Afghanistan, referenced in the article “Keeping Afghanistan’s Gender Apartheid on the Map“.

The panel members reminded the audience that the Taliban seek international recognition, presenting themselves as “Taliban 2.0,” yet conditions for women and girls in Afghanistan continue to deteriorate. To better understand this deterioration, the following are key takeaways from GIWPS’s analysis of the Taliban’s new criminal regulation, which the panelists spoke to (see the link for more in-depth analysis):

  1. The regulation institutionalizes an authoritarian system of control.
  2. It explicitly abandons equality and divides society by status.
  3. It legalizes vigilante violence and criminalizes women’s autonomy.
  4. Women’s lives are valued less than animals under the law.
  5. Dissent, belief, speech — and even silence — are criminalized by design. (GIWPS)

As the panel concluded, Habiba spoke of the “pain that she feels in her heart” when watching the film, moving many in the audience to tears. She emphasized Afghan women’s history of resilience and called on the international community, including those present, to stay engaged and speak out about these issues. She encouraged advocacy by supporting Temporary Protected Status for Afghans (revoked in 2025), sharing the film and the narrative of the negotiators, and urging governments not to recognize the Taliban’s legitimacy.

The current situation in Afghanistan, as depicted in the film, reflects decisions in which the United States and other democratic leaders failed to support women’s priorities or heed their warnings. This underscores the concerns of IWA’s Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) program and similar initiatives regarding the future of United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325. As the 25th anniversary of UNSCR 1325 passed this fall, the continued sidelining of women in positions of influence who have devoted their lives for sustainable peace, such as the four women in the film, is not something that should be taken lightly.

Despite these challenges, these women,  some of whom have now been exiled from their home, have not given up. It is their hopeful vision for the next generation that fuels their persistence and determination. It especially calls on those of us in the WPS domain to offer our support in every way possible.

Further  Reading